Kasumi's Ballroom Blitz
by SkyStrider
Summary: The paperwork has been signed, so it's time for Kasumi's and Tofu's formal wedding. The threads that started in "The Bachelor Party" and continued though several other stories get woven together here as the Henna sends several assassins to kill Akari – and Ranma – just before the wedding. Unfortunately for the assassins, Nerima looks after its own. Those poor, poor assassins...
1. Warnings

Chapter 1: Forerunners (Tuesday December 31st, 2002)

Akari, Ryoga, Maomolin, Chiyoko and the rest of the Tendos and Onos waited as Tofu and Kasumi thanked the last of their "guests" - Toshio Kuno. The billionaire seemed to be discussing a timetable with the couple regarding tomorrow's wedding. Meanwhile a work crew, arranged for by Judge Sanu, was cleaning up the late lunch buffet that Sanu had arranged for everyone including all the guests, bodyguards, and family.

"What happens now?" Chiyoko asked Maomolin.

"We head back to the dojo residence and change for the evening, so we can celebrate New Year's Eve," he told her. "I think everyone is heading there but the newlyweds. Kasumi and Tofu will want some time alone."

"Let's just say the Clinic is off limits for a while," Ranma smirked. He was promptly doped-slapped by Akane, Nodoka, and Nabiki.

"The dojo residence will be open for everyone though," Nodoka reassured Chiyoko. "There are four new bedrooms in the dojo basement, spare cots and futons in the dojo proper, and more futons in the living room. That's why we insisted you skip the hotel and stay with us tonight - we have plenty of room for four more. This way, the family - which includes you, dear - can watch the town's midnight fireworks from the house and ring in the New Year with mochi and sake together. Then you don't have to worry about going back to the hotel. Please say you and Maomolin will be there?"

"That sounds wonderful!" Chiyoko exclaimed. "We do the same thing at home!" Maomolin smiled as she glanced at him for agreement and he gave a small nod.

"There's also food at the house…" Nodoka continued, but was stopped by a worker who handed her leftover food. She immediately dumped it on her son and daughter-in-law-to-be. "Make that more food at the house," she finished. "I know you couples each have a romantic evening planned, but you can fill up at the house and not waste your money."

"Yes, Mother Saotome," Maomolin sighed dramatically.

Nodoka laughed and patted his cheek - just before she accepted another bag from a worker. This bag she dumped on Nabiki who automatically dumped it to Mousse. She looked at the self-proclaimed brother and sister and asked: "And do you two have dates tonight?"

"Yes," Nabiki answered. "I have a date with a gentleman named Sora and he has a date with a lady named Kairi."

At Nodoka's confused look, Mousse chimed in: "They're characters from a game called 'Kingdom Hearts'. It's a one-player game, but Nabiki and I have been taking turns playing it on the PS2 at the house."

As Nodoka gave a small laugh, Nabiki added serenely: "There are some two player games we play too. Both of us want a night away from 'the wheel of dating' - it's too exhausting with everything else happening around here." Mousse just nodded his agreement.

* * *

Maomolin summoned his suitcase and opened it. Strictly speaking, he did not need one, but sometimes it helped to fit in. With a thought he switched clothes and set up his suit for tomorrow's formal wedding. Chiyoko knocked on his door - he could feel her presence and knew it was her. "Come in," he called out.

Chiyoko opened the door and commented: "This is a spare too. Ranma and Mousse's rooms have more character."

"Ryoga and Akari are in those. It's a waste though, they only need one room," Chiyoko laughed.

"Leave Nodoka her illusions - even if she doesn't believe them herself," Maomolin grinned back. "Mousse and Ranma haven't slept in those rooms yet - they won't until tomorrow night. Don't worry about it." Suddenly he stopped cold.

"What's wrong?" she asked.

He turned his head ever so slightly and held up a finger to request a pause and said: "Give me a moment, Love." Her eyes widened and she held very still. Maomolin stood there straining all his senses. "Can't pin it down," he mumbled to himself. "I can hear them, but I can't fix their location." He thought for a moment, and then touched Chiyoko's shoulder as he moved passed her into the hallway. She followed him with her eyes, but stayed still.

"Ryoga!" Maomolin called down the hallway.

"Yo!" the Lost Boy yelled back.

"The bracers that Tofu gave you…wear them tonight!" Maomolin ordered.

"What?" Ryoga said confused as he stepped into the hallway.

"The wrist bracers - wear them tonight!" the Cat repeated.

"But…" Ryoga began and then stopped. "What's out there?" he asked instead.

"I'm not sure - something…something unusual. Wear the bracers. And the bandana that Akari gave you - the one Akane made. Wear that too," Maomolin ordered again.

"Should we stay put?" Ryoga asked.

"I don't know," Maomolin admitted. "The power surges may have nothing to do with us. It felt like Elemental energy, but we've had Elementals flowing into Nerima for the last couple of days. They only settled in and stayed idle - probably forerunners of the Storm. These felt like they were on the fringes of Nerima. And tell Akari to wear the pendant you gave her for Christmas."

"There's nothing magical about that," Ryoga stated.

"I know, but have her wear it anyway," Maomolin replied. "Just an odd feeling. I want to lend her a silver bracelet too. I'll find it."

"All right," Ryoga agreed.

"We'll talk in the house," Maomolin said as he turned around. "Meet us there in half an hour." Ryoga agreed and returned to his room.

Maomolin walked back into his room and Chiyoko was exactly where he left her. The fact that she hadn't moved startled him a little. "Are you all right?" he asked her.

She turned to look at him. "You called me 'Love'," she stated.

Maomolin paused for a moment and ran the last few minutes back through his mind. "Oh," he said a little sheepishly. "I guess I did."

"Did you mean it?" she asked.

"Yes," he admitted simply. "I didn't mean to upset you with it. I love being with you. When I'm not with you, I'm thinking about how soon I can get back to you. I love you. I'd say I'm not trying to complicate your life, but that's a lie: things always get complicated when people get together - there's no avoiding it." He sat down on the bed. "How about, I'm not trying to unduly complicate it."

Chiyoko smiled briefly, but it was replaced by a serious face. She sat down beside him and reached to grab hold of one of his hands. "Maomolin? How old are you?" she asked once she held his hand.

He winced a little at that. "That's a tricky question," he admitted.

"Maomolin, no one has gold eyes like you do. There are human amber eyes that sort of look like gold, but that's not you - you have pure gold eyes. I know that you look like you could be Ranma's and Ryoga's biological father, but they are your foster sons - not your genetic sons. Ranma and Ryoga are not genetically related to each other at all," she stated. Maomolin just nodded his head. "I've seen you do magic, just like I've seen Ranma and Ryoga do magic. I know there's more to you than what I see." He sighed again. "Please, how old are you?" she pressed.

"I was born over two thousand years ago as you reckon Time," he stated heavily.

Chiyoko look stunned for a few moments. "You lied to me. You said you were named after that Chinese story," she said.

"No," he answered firmly. "I evaded the question. I asked you if you had heard the legend. I've never lied to you. That's not a way to build a relationship, even if it's just a friendship."

"You just want to be my friend?" she asked incredulously.

"How about 'I'll take what I can get'?" he replied. He squeezed her hand and continued: "One thing I have learned over the years is that you cannot force Love. It either blossoms or it doesn't. I was attracted to you - I still am. You were attracted to me - I think you still are." She nodded her head. "From there, we dated and became friends. Then we became confidants. Then we kissed and we moved to boyfriend/girlfriend. I do not want to demand more than you can give, but I will take what you want to give and give what you want to take."

"Maomolin - Ghost Cat – I am I your lost love?" she asked in a small voice.

Maomolin rubbed his eyes slowly. "I don't know," he admitted. Then he took a deep breath and added: "And I don't care." She looked surprised at him. "My lost love died," he said. "Through no fault of her own; and she has moved on. I should have too. That's in the past. You're here in the now with me. I'd love to have you in my future."

"Maomolin? Can you change back into your original form? Please?" she asked.

"Well…"

"Please?"

Maomolin sighed and then became a giant white wildcat. Chiyoko gave a small yelp and leaped up. She turned to look with wide eyes at the giant cat sitting on the bed whose head touched the ceiling. Then she began to giggle. "Maomolin, I don't think you were that size when you first met your wife," she stated.

"Umm…no," he admitted. "I can't make myself that small anymore. Smallest I can make myself is about 100 kg."

"Oh dear…you're not really a cat anymore, are you? You're something else."

"I'm a Cat Lord," he said with a shrug.

"A Bakeneko," she said. "A fully sentient creature. Fully developed emotions. You have a soul."

"More likely than not," he admitted again.

"And you have a consistent human form. Would our children look human?" she pushed.

"Yes. They would be mostly human. The shape change is near perfect. They might have my golden eyes, and a bit more strength - spiritual and otherwise."

She reached out with both hands and placed her hands on the big cat's cheeks. "Change back," she ordered. Instantly, Maomolin's human form was back and Chiyoko held his head in her hands. "Idiot" she said as she gave him a fierce kiss.

"Does this mean I can keep on loving you?" Maomolin asked her with a trace of astonishment as she broke the kiss.

"Yes, idiot," she said with a smile. "As long as you're falling in love with me, and not the memory of your wife."

"Not an issue," the golden-eyed man answered.

"Good, because I am in love with you too," she said firmly. "Part of me knew who you were when we first met. There was something about you that just connected with me. Admittedly, I hoped you were the real Maomolin; the idea of a yokai lover excited and entranced me. Maybe I am the reincarnation of your wife, but if I am - I've changed. I'm me now, not her then." He just nodded and she continued: "I'm a very conservative person - I want a proper relationship. You don't get to love me and leave me."

"I'm not planning on doing that to you!" he protested.

"Good. For now, we stay boyfriend/girlfriend," she stated. "We continue not to see others. If you try and give me a ring before summer, I'm going to stick it in a safe deposit box and refuse to give you an answer until the fall. I've heard enough about this Storm." He looked surprised at that. "I'm not always asleep when you think I am," she added with an admonishing finger. Now he sighed. "You will concentrate on surviving it and getting the rest of us through it. Understood?"

"I think you were a general in a previous life," he replied with a raised eyebrow.

"Understood?" she pressed again.

"Understood," he agreed.

* * *

Ranma and Akane walked through the New Year's Eve crowds at Ginza. Ranma was wearing the same outfit he had worn to Tofu's bachelor party: a deep blue shirt and matching pants with black shoes. The shirt was adorned with a red dragon flowing from one shoulder and across his chest. Akane was wearing a deep blue dress that matched Ranma's clothes. The dress's neckline was cut just high enough so that the modest young lady was comfortable, but low enough to catch Ranma's attention despite being a "leg man" - much to Akane's delight. Her dress was fairly long, but had a slit on one side that displayed a healthy leg here and there. Unlike many of the women around her, Akane's shoes were very comfortable with a short heel - something she could wear for long periods of time and even run in. Both of them wore leather jackets despite the seasonable weather. Unlike the people around them who wore similar outer wear so they could show off their clothes, the couple was not bothered by the cold and did not feel the need to bolt through the streets. As a result, the two had a much more confident bearing that caught bystanders' attention as much as the clothing the couple wore.

"What did you think?" Akane asked Ranma as they left the Sony Building.

"We own everything worthwhile right now," Ranma said with a snort.

Akane gave a light laugh. "All right, the Star Wars games were a little lame," she admitted.

"A little? C'mon - not nearly enough fighting. Too much plot, too much driving spaceships. If I had a light saber, I'd never touch a blaster - ever," he stated. "And the race games - driving with Ciren is a lot more exciting."

Akane laughed again. "You mean terrifying," she corrected.

"That too," he said with a shrug and a smirk. "Where to next?"

"Mitsukoshi," Akane stated.

"A department store?" he moaned. Ah, c'mon…What's there?"

"Bright colorful window displays, coffee that doesn't cost 1000 yen, and free chocolate cookies," she coaxed.

"Free? Why didn't you say so?"

"Thought that might catch your attention," she said smugly. The look dropped from her face as an Otherworldly shiver passed over her. Ranma felt it too. "What was that?" she asked surprised.

"I don't know," he said slowly. "Give me a second…" Ranma reached out with his mind and scanned the crowd. There was a mix of people in the area, and some Others, but nothing that alarmed him. "Nothing," he stated. "Give me your hands," he ordered. She held his hands and he braced himself using her as an anchor. _"Rera!"_ he called internally.

 _"Yo!"_ his companion called back.

 _"Did you feel that shiver?"_ Ranma asked the Sprite.

 _"Yes, but I don't know what it was…or where. Can we go somewhere and get Apay in on this?"_ Rera asked.

 _"Yes. Give me a few minutes."_

Ranma opened his eyes. "Coffee and cookies - enough for four," he told his fiancée.

"We're going to do this now?" Akane asked surprised.

"Something's wrong - Rera's worried. Do you know how often that happens?" he shot back.

"Good point. C'mon." With that she pulled Ranma in the direction of Mitsukoshi.

Ten minutes later, they were seated in a corner booth out of the way in a third floor café belonging to the department store. Each of them held a cup of coffee and a bag of cookies in their left hands on the table. "Let's go," Ranma told Akane. With that, they joined right hands and then slid their hands up so each other's fingers touched the wrist bracers hidden under their jackets. Ranma never got the chance to say "Meditate." With a jolt, his consciousness was yank out of the World and into Akane's Spirit World.

Ranma hit the ground and managed to catch himself, only falling as far as one knee. He immediately stood up in time to catch Akane as she dropped into his arms. She was busy making sure the coffee and the cookies didn't fall. Rera, in his ten-year old form, appeared wearing his gi and dropped to the ground, falling on his rump. "Sure…you save the fiancée, but let me hit the ground," he groused. Ranma shoved a cookie in the Sprite's mouth as he set Akane down.

Apay appeared (likewise looking ten years old) before them wearing her yellow dress. She snatched a cookie from Akane's hand. "We need to get back to Nerima," she commanded imperiously.

* * *

Nabiki lay on the couch watching the screen and waiting her turn. Mousse was on the floor concentrating on the game. "All-in-all, this worked out better than I planned," she reflected silently. "Give him a little harmless support, hold his hand when a panic attack came, and I thought I'd get a servant out of the deal - he was use to taking orders from women. But I didn't count on the submission being burned out of him along with his love for Shampoo. He doesn't tell me go to hell, he just raises an eyebrow and stands there unmoving. He's got the silent rebuke down pat."

She switched her eyes to him. "He's used to treating women as equals. Enough so, that unlike Ranma, he doesn't think twice about socking a woman in the jaw if she attacks him. Or marching me home when he's had enough. He's intelligent, loyal, and good looking - he'd make a wonderful golden retriever except he'll only take so much and he does get even." Nabiki rolled her eyes at the memory of 'someone' nailing every shoe she owned to the floor - both here and in her dorm room. She had to borrow a set of slippers to go to class and later borrow two hammers to pry them off the floor carefully. She was fairly sure Mousse did it. He was the only one chuckling at her story - the rest were rolling on the floor with laughter. "When I strike back, he retaliates again, upp'ing the ante slowly but surely." The last round stopped because Nabiki dropped the ante - pulling a very minor prank that he was satisfied to let stand. "He knows I have to have the last word," she mused. "And he's happy to let me have it so long as I get his message." He was the one male she couldn't either frighten, annoy, out-wit, or wrap-around her fingers. Nabiki went from annoyed, to amused, to interested, to fascinated by his enigma.

And then there was his vulnerable moments: when Tofu's spells failed and the entire neighborhood heard him screaming in terror until Ranma or Tofu could wake him up. Nabiki remembered once running to the clinic with Tofu and her sisters to see Ranma restraining a trembling Mousse with every ounce of strength the pig-tailed man had. It had taken both Tofu and Kasumi to break the nightmare's hold. That pity caused the last of Nabiki's barriers to fall regarding Mousse. If Shampoo ever came back, Nabiki would see that the bitch burned in hell.

After that night, she had to evaluate her relationship with the young man and figure out exactly where she and he stood and what she wanted from him. She even had to figure out what she had to offer him - something that annoyed her slightly. Still, she had made accommodations for Ranma and Tofu - one more wouldn't kill her. She wasn't interested in a lover or a boyfriend of any sort at this stage of the game, which was fine because he wasn't interested either - he had been burned too badly. But she had to admit she cared about him and even loved him - in a sisterly fashion. The more she thought about that, the more the idea grew on her. She'd never had a brother - Ranma was her brother-in-law; he belonged to Akane. But there was something comforting about having Mousse sit beside her at the dinner table - someone who wanted nothing from her but company; someone who she didn't have to play.

So, she embarked on a new campaign; she would increase the attachment between them, but she would also work at throwing other women at him. There was a slight danger that it could backfire and Mousse would settle down with a girl too soon, but Nabiki was sure it would be a few years before that - by then the sibling attachment would be complete. Sayuri was a godsend; the young woman wanted playmates, but not attachments. When Sayuri started to 'feel out' Nabiki regarding Mousse, the two women quickly came to an understanding. Both of them talked to Tofu together to let him know the game was a foot. The doctor only cautioned them to take it slowly, but he did not stop them. Then Tofu's Bachelor Party happened and Nabiki decided her brother was ready to start dating again. She hung a sign on the Cat Café (with Cologne yelling "Don't….Stop…Don't…Stop…" at her between laughing fits), gave Sayuri a 'heads up', waited thirty minutes, and then started the gossip chain. Since that moment, Mousse's life had been a blur. He had single/unattached women throwing themselves at him from all sides. There was only one respite from all of it, one single young woman who left him alone - Nabiki. Mousse took the available shelter. If he smelled a rat, he never admitted it.

As a reward for her services, Nabiki fed Sayuri information about Mousse's schedule (and mental state) and worked to derail Sayuri's rivals. Sayuri used the information to the best of her advantage and managed to snag a real date with Mousse. The date was a major success, making Sayuri ecstatic, restoring a little wonder to Mousse, and bolstering his spirit once more. The day after Sayuri's date - Christmas Day - Nabiki stated her common ground with Mousse and laid claim to him as her brother. When Mousse teasingly called her 'Shark Lady', Nabiki knew she had succeeded.

Now she watched her brother beat the crap out of Heartless using Sora's Keyblade. Unlike Ranma and Akane, Mousse shared Nabiki's love of games with more storylines and puzzle solving. It was hard to keep up with a Martial Artist's eye-hand coordination (even for the game console sometimes), but Kingdom Hearts was not a one-on-one game, and it allowed Nabiki to use a maxim from "Raiders of the Lost Ark": "Very dangerous, you go first." She would watch Mousse play and see what worked and didn't work. She would also look out for things that he seemed to skip.

Mousse finished a sequence and saved his game. He looked over at Nabiki who was jotting down some notes and commented: "You know, you could just buy the cheat guide."

"What?" Nabiki answered in mock horror. "Spend my own money?" As he chuckled at that, she continued: "Besides, *life* doesn't have a cheat guide. This is practice for real life. You should make some notes yourself - and not just for this game."

"Maybe…" he admitted as he handed her the controller.

She started to bring up her game as Nodoka came in with some sandwiches. "Here, both of you should eat something," the mother told them.

"It was a big lunch, Nodoka," Nabiki replied. "And I'm not a Martial Artist," she added looking meaningfully at Mousse who accepted the sandwich gratefully. "Kasumi and Akane have had to increase their food intake so they don't waste away. I don't have that problem."

"You still should have something," Nodoka insisted. "If nothing else, I'll get some fruit and cheese for you." Before Nabiki could object (having been distracted by her game), Nodoka had set the sandwich down and ran back to the kitchen. Nabiki sighed.

"Next time, just accept the sandwich," Mousse advised her. "Even if you just eat a small bit, it won't go to waste."

"Not in this house," Nabiki agreed. She went back to playing her game.

She played for another five minutes when a shiver raced up her spine. Mousse bolted into a sitting position and seemed to be listening for something. Then her eyesight began to grey out. "No!" she thought urgently. "I don't want this! I didn't ask for it! I'm the normal one!"

Her vision faded completely, and was replaced by an image - she saw Ryoga laying on the ground and a large translucent humanoid creature standing over him. _"Kill him,"_ a high pitched voice said from nearby. The creature nodded and stomped on Ryoga's throat. Nabiki heard bones snapping. _"That should do it,"_ another voice responded. _"Let's go."_

"NO!" Nabiki shouted breaking the vision. Mousse stood up and looked wildly at her. "GO!" she commanded. "GO HELP RYOGA, NOW!" The Chinese gentleman vanished in a blur.

* * *

A/N: Next - Shock Troops


	2. Shock Troops

Chapter 2: Shock Troops (Tuesday December 31st, 2002)

Ryoga felt his windpipe crushed beneath the powerful blow. Pain flooded up from his neck as the bones of his spine were ground against each other. "NO!" he thought. "They have Akari! I have to fight! I have to live!" He summoned his willpower and tried to focus on his critical injury, but it was so hard to work with all the stars and blinding lights going off in his mind. "MUST FIGHT!" He felt blood flowing out of his mouth. "NO!" he thought again as he felt himself start to slip away.

 _"The bandana!"_ Suma's voice sounded in his mind. " _Focus everything on the bandana! Your Will and your Anger! Focus! It's got Apay's protection rune on it!"_

Ryoga did as he was told and felt something grab the smashed throat firmly. Fire seemed to race up and down his spine. The constriction in his throat vanished as his windpipe inflated again. His blood ran across his neck only to get soaked up by the bandana. His thoughts cleared as all his pain vanished. The fire was now external - the bandana was burning. Ryoga sat up and pulled the remains of the bandana from his neck. The bandana continued to burn in his hands but the fire did not touch him. He watched dumbfounded as the cloth was quickly consumed and there was nothing left but ash in his hands.

 _"The rune absorbed all the damage,"_ Suma told him. _"That's its job. It just took the killing blow. We'll have to get Akane to make a new one for you later."_

"We have to find Akari!" Ryoga shouted internally.

 _"No crap!"_ Suma shouted back. _"I'm working on it, but the Water Sprites are shielded somehow. They shouldn't be able to do that! Open your eyes, look for clues, and call the freaking cavalry while you're at it!"_

"What?" Ryoga asked confused.

 _"Pull out your phone, call Ranma, Akane, Mousse, Maomolin, Tofu, Hideo, and anyone else you can bloody think of. But do it while you're hunting for Akari!"_ Suma ordered.

Ryoga scrambled up and scanned the alley he had been knocked into. Meanwhile he pulled out his phone and texted "505" (numerical "SOS") to Ranma as Daran had taught him (and the rest). There was a trail of wet ground leading away from the attack, so he started to follow it. After 20 meters, the trail vanished in to a closed manhole. It was at this point that Mousse leaped from a building to stand before Ryoga. "I can't find Akari - she's being shielded," Mousse stated bluntly.

"We were attacked by Water Sprites," Ryoga answered. "There was no warning. I was sucker punched from out of nowhere." He gestured at the trail leading into the sewers.

"Akane showed me how to break a Shield long range. Give me your hand, think about Akari, and focus a Nova Burst into me," Mousse ordered.

"But…"

"Do it before it's too late!" Mousse commanded.

Ryoga grabbed Mousse's hand and did as he was told. The Burst erupted as a perfect sphere with Mousse as its center. Ryoga watched as it quickly faded, but Mousse was standing still for several moments after that, apparently still tracking it. "Got her!" Mousse suddenly exclaimed. "They just hid her again, but she's alive and slowing them down."

Suddenly, Tofu appeared in his Spirit/half-Kitsune form. Maomolin also appeared as a panther with glowing eyes. Mausu stepped out of the shadows and doped-slapped Ryoga. "When you send out an SOS, keep sending it until you get a reply," the little man rebuked the Lost Boy. "You're lucky Mousse was already sending one for you."

"I sent it to Ranma - I thought he'd get it," Ryoga defended himself.

"Ranma's on a top of a speeding train coming in from Ginza. He probably can't hear his phone right now," Tofu commented with a roll of his eyes as he ripped the manhole cover off its seating. "You knew he and Akane went to Ginza. Send to the closest ally - not the farthest!" He looked at Mousse. "Put on Akane's bandana and lead the way."

Mousse started down the manhole as Daran ran up to them. "Ciren's on her way," the dark skinned man announced breathlessly. "Ojima is on alert. Hideo and Olaf are about five minutes away. I heard from Konatsu…"

"Konatsu is here," a feminine voice announced as its owner stepped into the light. "Sasuke will join us shortly. Let's go."

* * *

Akari hung in the grip of the water creature, biding her time. The thing looked like a translucent ape and was about twice as big. Four other twisted creatures glanced at her with angry faces. She had managed to inflict a small amount of damage and almost get away when Ryoga somehow burst the Shield hiding her, but her captors had managed to stun her again. Now they were annoyed.

"It's obvious they would prefer to kill me and be done with their task," Akari thought as she faked unconsciousness. "But something is preventing them from killing me liked they tried to do to Ryoga."

For a few minutes, Akari had thought the things had succeeded in killing Ryoga (which had broken her spirit), but then Ryoga's Nova Burst had come to her and restored her with a vengeance. All her anger awoke and she had thrust her hands into the creature holding her. It was the first time she had ever cast a Chi blast - she never knew she was capable of it. The creature holding her was even more surprised - it blew completely apart. Unfortunately, the others were only stunned and one of them grabbed her again. Her former captor managed to reassemble itself and charge at her, only to be knocked away by another. The things screamed at each other for a few minutes until the largest of them managed to re-assert control. Then it slugged Akari, almost knocking her out, and it took possession. Now it held her tightly, checking frequently for any signs of consciousness, but Akari just lay still with her eyes closed and her mind open.

"These things are really hideous," Akari thought. "They remind me of a polluted lake - certainly smell like one. They have to be some sort of corrupted Water Elemental. They're also not that bright if I can fool them this easily."

She considered her situation. "We've moved above ground again and they're limited in how fast they can move - probably because of me on both counts. But I'm out-numbered and out-powered. I need help, but they're Shielding to keep me hidden. I can't break their Shield, but maybe I can bypass it…" Akari slowly raised a hand to her throat and the pendant Ryoga gave her for Christmas. The body of the small pedant was a hard, sharply carved crystal. Very deliberately, she pressed the crystal into her hand and drew its bottom point across the base of her thumb to create a deep cut. She felt the blood flow and dropped her hand, only to receive another cuff from her captor. She drooped immediately and faked unconsciousness again, with her bloody hand hanging free and dripping a trail through the alleyways they traveled….

* * *

Mousse led the way out of the sewers.

"Are you sure they came this way?" Ryoga asked.

"No, but this is the most likely path," Mousse answered. "The local spirits are freaked out and whatever has her couldn't have carried Akari any further down those pipes - things are either getting too small or they are locked. We passed the point where I Saw Akari. We need to spread out and see if we can find any…"

"Blood," Maomolin the panther cut him off. "I smell blood - Akari's."

"What!" Ryoga shouted.

"This is the part of the mission where we practice being quiet!" Daran hissed at him.

"I smell it too," Tofu agreed. "It's faint though - like from a small cut. That way," he added pointing.

Sasuke tapped Konatsu and pointed upward. The male Kunoichi nodded and both leapt upwards into the shadows. The other men followed the trail carefully, looking for an ambush, but moving as fast as possible. After a few blocks Tofu cursed. "Ciren's busy," he said. "We need to keep moving on our own here…"

* * *

Ranma and Akane rode on top of the train heading back to Nerima. Boarding the train like normal human beings was right out - the train stations were completely packed with party-goers. "The problem with living in Tokyo!" Ranma yelled as he pointed at the streets the elevated train passed over.

Akane just nodded. She and Ranma could communicate despite the train's speed courtesy of Ranma's Wind Magic, but the train was still loud. She was also typing something on her phone. At his glance, she said "I'm trying to find out where everyone is!"

Ranma nodded and pulled out his phone. He immediately saw the SOS message from Ryoga. "Ah crap!" he shouted as he showed the phone to Akane.

Akane looked frustrated as she yelled: "He and Akari stayed in Nerima! Why the hell didn't he contact Mousse or Tofu first?"

"Maybe he did!" Ranma answered. He sent his thought out to Ryoga. "He's alive and moving!" Ranma shouted to Akane. "We ne…"

Ranma never finished that sentence. Something jumped down from an overpass and swept him from the train. "RANMA!" Akane screamed. She checked her surroundings and leapt from the train after him, skidding along a guardrail to shed speed. Then she jumped down into an empty parking lot. Her landing was a lot more graceful than Ranma's: Ranma and his – now her – attacker bounced and rolled along the ground punching through fences and crushing random objects (mostly garbage cans) in their path. The featureless thing Ranma was fighting was large - easily three-times the shape-shifter's size – and had a vague humanoid shape. It seemed to have its hands tightly around Ranma's throat. Ranma's fists sunk into her attacker again and again with little effect. Then she released a blinding Chi blast that blew her attacker to bits. Akane watched as the bits rained down on the other side of the parking lot and began to flow together. "Water Sprite," she thought. Ranma seemed to be catching her breath. As Akane watched, the Sprite began to grow. "Water Elemental," she corrected herself. "This could be fun." She stomped barefoot toward the translucent monster (her shoes were long gone). "Yo, jackass!" she shouted at it. "No one attacks my fiancé!"

The thing's non-face looked and shot a huge jet of water at her, obviously wanting to flood her away. Akane concentrated and the water flowed past her without disturbing her - it smelled horrible though. "My turn!" she yelled as she sent a blazing softball of fire at it. The ball impacted the creature and forced it to step back. While it had no face on its humanoid shape, Akane got the impression it was surprised. It then pulled three balls about the size of Akane's head from its substance and threw them on the ground in front of it. With a start, Akane realized they were human skulls. "What the hell?" she thought. "Where did those come from?"

The skulls sprouted bone legs covered with a thin layer of skin, followed by an emaciated torso and bony arms - Akane could see the fore bones in each arm. A fanged jaw descended from each skull and a nose-less face of sorts formed. The three creatures, all standing about a meter and half tall, looked at Akane with hollow sockets and moaned. _"Oh crap,"_ echoed through Akane's mind from both her and Apay.

"Akane! MOVE!" Ranma shouted as the three creatures leapt at her with astonishing speed. She dodged them, but felt a chill as their claws just missed her.

 _"They steal life force!"_ Apay yelled internally. _"No Chi weapons!"_

"Crap, crap, crap…" Akane thought as the creatures re-oriented on her. Meanwhile the Elemental charged Ranma again and the shape-shifter was forced to concentrate on her own challenge.

 _"I thought zombies were slow!"_ Akane called to Apay.

 _"Don't blame me if your books got it wrong! DUCK!"_ Apay shouted as Akane dodged claw swipes again and again. _"Find a weapon! Steel preferably!"_

The brown-eyed woman nimbly leaped over a leg sweep attack. "A leg sweep? From a zombie?" Akane thought in surprise. "Hell, these things are warriors! All bets are off!" She dodged a sequence of attacks and then did a fast series of tumbles away from the monsters to the edge of the lot - and its fence. As the zombies closed quickly on her, Akane ripped a three meter pipe from the fence. She heated the pipe causing it to glow and, using it like a baseball bat, she swept the three from their feet, knocking them over a second fence. She smelled burning flesh from the pipe and tried not to think about it.

Akane gave a quick glance at Ranma which showed she was holding her own. Unlike Akane, she could use Chi weapons and she was turning part of the Elemental to ice and then smashing it. The water thing was not enjoying the experience, but it was healing itself as fast as Ranma was damaging it. Unlike the Elemental at the clinic, this one was unbound by a Circle, so it could generate water. Unfortunately, Akane couldn't help because her zombies were picking themselves up. "But I surprised them," she thought as she watched the things exchange glances with each other. "They weren't really expecting any real resistance. These things aren't mindless!"

She watched as the shrunken forms shared a final glance with each other and then ran at Akane, leaping and somersaulting through the air. During one particular high-flying tumble, a zombie seemed to pause and flare its limbs dramatically in an attempt to intimidate Akane. The move did send a shudder through Akane, but not for the reasons the zombie hoped. The thought "I've seen that move before!" fired through Akane's brain. As the implications crashed down on the young woman, the three undead figures leapt to the top of the fence separating them from Akane and then flew at the young woman.

"Breaking point!" Akane shouted as she tapped the ground and raced away. A pit opened up just as the zombies landed - and swallowed them. Akane smashed the ground and the pit closed. "That won't hold them," she muttered to herself as she raced toward Ranma and the Elemental.

There was an explosion of dirt and gravel behind her. "Incoming!" Ranma yelled at her. She didn't bother answering back the obvious. Instead she concentrated and leaped at the back of the Elemental. She tumbled through it and it staggered as her weird power disrupted it. Ranma immediately went on the attack with a wind storm that lifted the creature up and threw it back on the zombies.

The red-head watched as the creature lost its shape on top of the undead and flooded the zombies away. Ranma looked at Akane as she said breathlessly: "They steal life force. I don't know if they steal Elemental energy, but our enemies don't look happy anyway. They'll be back though."

Ranma pulled out her cell phone and said: "We need help." She tapped '505' and hit send a few times. "Any ideas?" he asked.

 _"Working on it!"_ Apay sounded in Akane's mind. _"I need five minutes and you have to get rid of the zombies!"_

"My inner self has a plan," Akane told her. "We need to buy time."

Ranma shrugged as she watched the Elemental re-form and the zombies get up again. "I'm still good."

"Fine," Akane answered. She eyed the rail line overhead. "You deal with big and ugly. I know how to draw off the night brigade." With that she leaped toward the train trestle. She landed half the distance there, turned, and yelled something that could have been Mandarin Chinese: "-"

The reaction was immediate: the zombies screamed like the damned and ran at her, ignoring Ranma completely. Ranma looked surprised but had to concentrate on 'big and ugly' bearing down on her. Akane bounced up to the train track above with the zombies in hot pursuit. She ran fast on top of one of the rails, using it as a 'ground' as her thoughts tapped into the overhead power line. She began to glow brightly, causing her surroundings to fade.

The zombies were closing the distance, focusing completely on Akane and her glow. They ignored everything else - including the oncoming train Akane was racing toward. At the last moment, Akane killed the glow and leapt aside; the train struck her pursuers squarely. She continued racing alongside the train toward its fast approaching end. Once it was gone, she turned and saw her three opponents still running toward her, looking somewhat worse for the wear. Akane pulled everything the overhead line would yield into herself. The whites of her eyes turned blue. She looked at the zombies, held up her hands about 30 cm apart, and yelled: "Thunder Strike!"

The zombies were blown back by the blast and tumbled along the track, lucky that the Nerima lines didn't use a third rail. Akane knew that if they could hear her challenge before and be thrown off by her light, then there was a possibility that they could be stunned by her blast - which seemed to have worked. While they were still confused, she ran forward at warp speed and mapped out a twelve step circle around them with throwing a massive amount of heat at them. Unnecessarily, she yelled: "Hiryu Shorten Ha!"

Immediately, a tornado sprang up sweeping the zombies up. Akane intensified the heat difference at the center of the tornado. "Hotter" she shouted at herself. She fed more and more energy into the twister lifting the zombies higher and higher - right into the overhead line. Immediately, Akane created a path to ground and the zombies burst into flame.

 _"It's not enough," Apay shouted internally. "Let me speak!"_

 _"Done!" Akane told her._

Akane's mouth shouted long forgotten words of Power. The Words resonated through Akane and she understood the nature of the Spell, even if she didn't understand the Words. She set her will behind the Spell. Now her captives started to scream between the fire and the windstorm pulling them apart, but Akane set her jaw grimly and willed the flames on the zombies to burn hotter. Finally, a scream of "SHISHEN!" tore out of the tornado and the zombies began to break apart. The limbs crumbled to dust and ash, followed by the torso. Then the jaws crumbled until only the bare skulls remained. Akane slowly backed the tornado down until the skulls were resting on the ground in front of her. She walked over to the side of the elevated track, yanked free a long metal bar, and smashed one of the skulls. It immediately crumbled to dust. A light breeze blew the dust away. Akane oriented on the other two skulls…

* * *

Ranma continued to fight the Water Elemental. Fortunately, she and Akane had made it back to Nerima before the thing attacked, so Ranma was able to replenish herself from the Nexus. It wasn't perfect, but it allowed her to keep up with the shambling monster - especially since she had to rely on Magic rather than Martial Arts to counter the creature. She was forced to dodge the Elemental's blows again and again, and attack by freezing it. The creature was hurt by the freezing, but would withdraw its essence from the ice, limiting damage. Smashing the ice freed up Ranma's movements, but did not hurt the monster further. "My strikes don't really do anything," Ranma thought. "My knives don't do anything, and I don't have a weapon large enough to strike a big enough area of it to make a…."

Her eyes fell on the three meter fence pole Akane had discarded. A staff was also useless, but Ranma had another idea. She touched the ground to open a pit that swallowed the Elemental - a distraction at best, but that was all she needed. She leaped and snatched up the pole while the beast was climbing out of the hole. While she was waiting for it, she drew in more power from the Nexus and sent a searching thought out to Akane - the blue-black-haired woman was alive, healthy and her confidence was high. "I have to trust her," Ranma thought. "And I can't lead this thing to her anyway or it could short out her power sources."

The Elemental charged Ranma and the young woman swung her weapon through the beast. She had super-chilled the pipe, and it immediately froze part of the Water Elemental on the pass thru, causing the Elemental to lose mass again. The think staggered slightly and sent jets of water at Ranma, but she froze them mid-stream and stepped away from the ice masses. As it had during Ranma's last attacks, the Elemental healed itself and regained its normal size again. But there was one slight change this time around - there was a mass of frozen ice at the far end of the pole Ranma was wielding. Ranma quickly swung his ice club back at the Elemental, making the club practically radiate cold. The monster blocked the swing this time, losing an arm to the club. Again, the monster healed the damage, but Ranma's club was bigger. After a few more swings, the mass of ice at the end of the pole was nearly a meter in diameter and extremely heavy. "That's enough," Ranma muttered to herself. "Any more and I won't be able to fight with it." Then she yelled: "Roasting Chestnuts!"

The Elemental could not counter the speed of the attacks or keep up with the water dispersed by the huge club. As it tried to create more water, Ranma kept smashing it away. The creature had stood 4 meters tall, but it was soon down to 2 meters, and then one meter. It could control water, but not the ice Ranma continued to generate. Now it was in danger of Ranma's power freezing it solid, and then it would really be in trouble. It quickly faked an attack at Ranma and retreated, not by running, but by collapsing its form and simply flowing away from the young woman like a snake along the ground.

Ranma paused in confusion as her enemy retreated. Then she recognized the Saotome Secret technique in action. "Oh hell no!" she shouted after it. "You're not sneaking away after all this!" She ran after it with her club. The water snake continued to flow faster - and increase in length. Ranma knew she had to finish this quickly or that thing would attack again at a more advantageous time. "We're ending this now!" she called out.

The thing looked back and shot a ball of water at her, forcing Ranma to dodge. It should have paid attention to where it was going though. Akane Tendo stepped out from behind a bridge support and reached a hand straight down into its head. "Gotcha!" she shouted. Immediately, the water snake collapsed and the water dispersed.

Ranma looked surprised for a moment and then strode over to Akane and gave her a fierce bear hug. "Ah, were you worried about little old me?" Akane teased. Ranma dope-slapped her lightly and Akane laughed. Then Ranma's fiancée returned the hug just as fiercely.

Ranma pulled back a little and asked: "What did you just do to the Water Elemental?"

"I didn't; Apay did," Akane answered. "Somehow, she's learned a way to imprison it. I think she figured it out from looking at that trap Kuno's wizard had."

The shape-shifter looked impressed. "Did Apay take out the zombies as well?"

"She taught me how, but I did that," Akane replied somberly.

"Where are they?" Ranma asked.

"Gone," Akane stated bluntly. "Literally blown to bits. I'm not happy about that."

Ranma said seriously: "They were already dead, Akane."

"I know, and maybe they're at peace now. But, Ranma, they were Amazons."

"What?"

"They were Amazons," Akane repeated. "One of them used an intimidation tactic Shampoo use to use… And that thing I yelled at them - Shampoo use to mutter it at me anytime I really pissed her off. I don't know what it really means, but Cologne once dope-slapped Shampoo for saying it. And all three of the zombies responded to it."

"Whoa…" Ranma breathed out in amazement.

Akane nodded her head. "They weren't mindless; overconfident maybe - they expected to just kill me quickly, but not mindless. And they didn't really know what train tracks were or that it might mean an oncoming train - it never even registered until too late."

"So they were old Amazons," Ranma concluded. Akane nodded her head again. Ranma sighed and added: "Sort of makes sense I guess: undead warriors that drain life - hell of an army.

"Literally," Akane agreed. "Conventional arms won't really work. They were hit by a train and sustained light damage. They're somewhat vulnerable to fire, but it has to be very hot."

Something about that assessment bothered Ranma, but she'd have to think about it later. Akane had won with no real damage - her dress was trashed and her shoes were history - but she was fine. That's what counted. Ranma's gi (which had switched in with the shape change) was soaked thoroughly. Fortunately, the cold didn't bother her anymore. She also had a few bruises around her throat from where the Elemental had tried to choke her, but that would heal quickly - even more so when she found some hot water.

Ranma hugged Akane again and then released the other woman. "We need to catch up with the others," Ranma stated as she pulled out the phone again and showed the "505" messages stacking up. There were also "411" (info requests) and "20" (location requests) from Tofu and Ciren, but Ranma ignored them for now. "Something's up with Ryoga," she added.

Akane closed her eyes briefly. When she opened them she replied: "We'd better get going. He's on the other side of town."

Suddenly there was a screech of tires nearby and headlights appeared. The two women turned to see a red Ferrari 550 Maranello fly into view. "I suppose we *could* accept a lift," Ranma noted.

The headlights fell on the couple and then adjusted away from them as the car picked up speed. It then crashed through two chain link fences and swerved through the ice covered battlefield.

"Oh gods," Akane sighed.

The car swerved about and eventually skidded to a halt six meters away. The door popped open and Ciren looked out over the door at the couple. "Holy cripes," she muttered at the bedraggled woman. The Siren looked at the lot covered with twisted ice sculptures and huge cracks and shook her head. Then she became all business as she climbed out of her car. "Next time, answer the bloody '20' requests!" she yelled at them.

"We were a little busy," Akane replied as they both ran toward the car.

"How did you find us?" Ranma asked.

Ciren popped the truck. "Your phones aren't standard. As soon as you messaged '505', it started a homing beacon." She quickly sorted through items in her trunk. "I followed the rail line until I found the beacons." She pulled out two sets of black fatigues and threw them to Ranma and Akane. "Put these on quickly! Akari's been kidnapped by a group of Water Elementals. We've gotta go!"

* * *

A/N: I'm not going to be using footnotes in this story - I'd have to footnote every other line. If you have any questions about the above, see the character descriptions in my profile or browse the supporting storylines. You can also drop me a line...


	3. The First Assassins

Chapter 3: The First Assassins (Tuesday December 31st, 2002)

"Where are they taking her?" Ryoga whispered to Tofu. The team was walking through the back streets of Nerima following Akari's blood trail. They could hear New Year's revelers a few streets over. The Elementals were avoiding crowds for obvious reasons, even if they were Shielding.

"A boat most likely," Tofu answered quietly. "It's not like they can drive a truck. The problem is: why are they taking her anywhere?" Consternation crossed Ryoga's face as he realized what Tofu was saying.

"Something's not right," Daran agreed. "Best guess is they're worried about invoking the Water Queen's death if Akari dies."

Tofu's phone vibrated so he glanced at it quickly. "Ciren's picked up Akane's and Ranma's beacons," he told the rest. "She should be able to get them soon." He started to put it away when the phone buzzed again. He looked surprised at the number and immediately dialed it. "Nabiki? What's up?" he asked her. After a pause he asked: "Are you sure?" Another pause passed. "Call Ciren and let her know – she'll be with Ranma and Akane shortly. Clue Kuno in as well – he needs to know. Out." A grim smile formed on his face as he looked at the rest of them. "We just got a break. We know where they're taking her and why. We have to reward our benefactors later, but I already know what they want."

"What? Who?" Olaf rumbled.

"The Itabashi Yakazu just told us a band of assassins is waiting for Akari," Tofu said with a snort. "And where."

* * *

Bren held the cheap looking amulet. He had no idea why the hag told him to buy it from the Curio Shop, and it bothered him. Hell, the whole deal bothered him. He didn't mind killing someone, but common sense said that the more elaborate the scheme, the more that could go wrong with it. "Sounds like one of these mad genius executions," he thought. "Take delivery of the mark, fill her full of tranquilizers, put her in a crate packed with explosives, put this amulet around her neck, and then drop her into a desert from 10000 meters. What the hell?" The team had been warned not to kill her any other way. He really didn't understand why they couldn't just snuff the girl with a rifle.

"Stop staring at it," Dirk told him gruffly. "We're getting paid in gold for the hit. The client specified a particular way, that's it. We're getting paid more than enough to make up for the difficulty."

"But why?" Bren asked plaintively. "What possible reason for such a weird hit?"

"You've only been with us for a few years," Dirk told him. "I've seen more weird crap than you could imagine. I have a feeling we're going to see even more tonight. Put the amulet away, get your gun and guard the crate. When the other team gets here, we take the girl and leave."

"But…"

"NOW!" Dirk barked as he opened up a medical bag and started to pull out small medicine bottles and a syringe.

Bren snapped his mouth shut before Dirk closed it for him. Without a word, he walked away from the truck and towards the crate sitting in the middle of the empty warehouse. Zack was leaning on the crate watching him approach. The larger man grinned at him. "You're learning boy," the bearded man said. "You actually walked away," he added to the twenty-two year old. "That's a tough lesson for the young to learn." Bren snorted at him, but said nothing as he pulled a cigarette out of his jacket. Zack made a small gesture and Bren came closer. "Listen, man. Keep that lesson in your head. If this goes south, just walk away, mix with the rest of the tourist, and get back to the States with your advance as quick as possible."

"You're worried then," Bren asked Zack quietly.

"As Dirk said, there's a lot of weird crap out there. I ain't gonna bullshit you with the ghost stories, but this hit has all the marks of a 'sacrifice'," Zack said seriously.

"What, like cultists?" Bren asked incredulously.

"Something like that," Zack added. "And cultists have a way of making the curious vanish. You really don't want to end up on the next hit-list, do you?"

Bren looked up at the ceiling and blew out a stream of smoke. "You're serious, aren't you?" he asked. Zack just nodded knowingly. "All right, I hear you," Bren stated. "No questions, no answers, no gossip." Then he leaned against the crate and waited.

About five minutes later, a door at the far end of the building flew off its hinges across to the opposite wall with a loud clanging sound. Bren immediately took shelter behind the crate with Zack, swung his rifle around, and trained it on the open doorway. The four men by the truck did the same. Only Dirk stood without cover in front of everyone. He held something that looked like an RPG launcher. As Bren watched, *something* squeezed through the door. As it stepped away from the doorway, it resolved itself to be a rough-looking humanoid, standing about 4 meters tall and about three meters wide at the shoulder. It had no face and was made of a green glassy-looking substance that seemed to hang from its body like Spanish moss from a tree. Tucked under one arm, it held an unconscious young woman.

"Hold your fire!" Dirk shouted. "This is the drop-off team."

"Holy ! #!#!" Bren whispered.

"Remember, what I told you, kid," Zack said quietly. "Back away from the crate."

As he and Zack backed away, four other creatures squeezed through the doorway and stood behind the leader. Bren noticed a stench that filled the warehouse. Dirk came forward holding the launcher at the ready. He said something in Chinese that Bren didn't understand. The lead creature started lumbering forward with the girl. Suddenly, the girl's eyes popped open and she somehow thrust her arms into the creature holding her. She yelled something and the monster *exploded*, dropping her. Bren dropped to the floor looking for cover as the girl got up and vanished.

Dirk quickly shook off his surprise and raised the launcher. He looked through the viewfinder and pulled the trigger. A net shot out of the launcher and seemed to wrap itself around something. As the net flew against the far wall, the girl re-appeared, caught in the net. She was struggling to free herself, but the net was defeating her. Dirk said: "Sorry little darling, it ain't that easy."

Meanwhile, the bits and pieces of the creature she had destroyed flowed back together. The monster re-formed and bellowed angrily. Dirk shouted more Chinese at it and repeated the phrase again and again until the thing seemed to calm down. Dirk then discarded the launcher and pulled out a syringe. He started to walk forward toward the girl caught in the net. She screamed: "RYOGA!"

"Now darling, you're only making this…" Dirk started but was cut off by a window exploding.

"AKARI!" a young man yelled as he flew in.

"Kill him!" Dirk barked. Bren and Zack opened fire. The others fanned away from the truck and did the same. The boy hit the ground and rolled. Then the lad slammed the warehouse floor with his fists. The cement floor swelled up and rippled forward like a giant wave from the sea and flowed out across the floor. It tossed Dirk down and flipped the crate. Bren went down as well. The truck was tossed into the air but came down squarely.

Dirk staggered up and pulled out a handgun. "Dodge this, !#! !" he shouted. As Dirk aimed, the truck exploded behind Bren, throwing Bren to the ground. Everyone but Dirk was also knocked down by the blast. Dirk stumbled, but did not fall.

"DODGE THAT!" a giant of a man bellowed in English. Bren saw that he was holding two RPG launchers - one over each shoulder.

"Surrender now!" a creature from a dream - or a nightmare - commanded. It stood on two feet (?) and was as tall as a human. It looked like a werewolf except the fur was red like a fox's.

"Eat silver!" Dirk shouted as he switched guns. The gun promptly exploded in his hands.

"Lead works just as well," the creature commented. "Still won't help you." Dirk crumpled to the ground and held his bleeding hand. A black man and a small Italian man were helping the boy cut the girl out of the net.

Bren started to reach for his weapon laying less than a couple of meters from him, only to have a huge paw step on his hand. He looked up in pain to see a huge panther grinning down on him. "Don't do that," the cat advised conspiratorially. "It will shorten your life dramatically."

The fox creature kicked Zack's weapon away. Zack was still stunned. The fox then called back: "Are they all right?"

A feminine voice outside of Bren's sight called out in English: "Stunned, concussed, a broken arm, a broken leg, and a few broken ribs. All alive, unfortunately."

The were-fox made a dismissive gesture. "Ah well. It will sit easier with Ojima and Sanu if there are no dead bodies. Besides, it's more difficult to question the dead - I'm not really a fan."

Dirk staggered up and looked at the five monsters standing in a corner unmoving. He screamed something at them, but they stood there still.

"They won't respond to anyone but Henna now," the fox creature told him in English. "They're Elementals and follow commands to the letter of the law. They delivered Akari to you and you released them. As far as they're concerned, this is your fault and that's the story they'll take back to Henna. I *really* suggest switching sides right about now."

"No…" Dirk mumbled.

"I'm sorry you feel that way," the were-fox said as he walked towards Dirk. "Henna's not known for being forgiving. By the way, your other guns won't work."

"No… No, you don't understand," Dirk said a little stronger. "The contract…." The fox looked alarmed as Dirk continued: "She made me sign…" He began making a gurgling sound.

"Ryoga! Leave now!" the fox creature ordered.

"But…" the boy started.

"Guardian!" the were-fox shouted. "Take Akari and run! NOW! Now's not the time!"

"Oh crap," Ryoga moaned.

"Oh no…" the girl began to say before the black man grabbed both of them and ran with them toward a door.

"NO!" Dirk cried between retching sounds. "NO!" He dropped to his knees. The fox creature ran over to him and grabbed him by the head. "AHHHHH!" Dirk screamed. The fox seemed to be shouting words that Bren couldn't understand. Dirk screamed like the damned as the fox tried to hold him still. Then, Dirk began to convulse as he screamed and the fox was hard put to hold on to the man. A look of decision crossed the were-fox's face and the creature tensed its shoulders. With a sudden twist of its arms, the fox wrenched Dirk's head and snapped his neck. The executioner looked grimly at the body and stepped away from it.

Bren watched stunned for a moment at the execution. There was a short impassive-looking ninja restraining Zack as Zack shouted out: "What the hell, man? You…" He stopped as a thick yellow smoke began to arise from the body.

The smoke formed a globe about a meter in diameter floating above the body, and within the globe, a woman's face coalesced. "Who dares rob me of a soul?" the face demanded. The words slithered into Bren's mind without sound.

"Go home, Henna," the fox creature said. "The mission failed - the girl is gone." His words also seemed to not travel through the air.

"What the hell are you?" the woman demanded.

"Myself - that's all I need to be. Go home," the were-fox told her.

The face - Henna - looked down at Dirk's body. "He pledged his soul to me if he failed. We signed a contract. He was mine to suck dry."

The fox creature shrugged: "He died at the hands of an enemy in pain. That also traditionally fulfills the contract. If you disagree, take it up with Death. I'm sure She'd love to see you."

Henna looked around the room, her gaze lingering on the captives. "Garbage," she said dismissively. "You can die with them." Then she looked at her Elementals standing in a corner. "Kill them all. Do not let one of them escape my vengeance. Bring their souls back to me!" With that, the face vanished and Dirk's body burst into flames. Bren felt something slam into his spirit and dig in like a tick.

"Release the captives! Let them go!" the fox creature yelled as he seemed to stagger. The seven-foot giant flinched as well. Then he slammed two rockets into his weapons and fired both RPG cannons at the monsters, somehow blowing all five apart and demolishing that corner of the warehouse room.

The cat got off Bren's hand. "GO!" it commanded. "Grab your friends and run for dear life!"

* * *

Tofu watched as green water began to flow out of the rubble in the corner. The assassins were already gone. "What did you hit them with?" Tofu asked Olaf.

"Potassium shot with the old Style Blessing. That and the rubble will keep them from reforming for about ten minutes," Olaf answered.

"What did Henna do to us?" Mousse asked. "Something hit me hard."

"She didn't. They did," Tofu answered pointing at the buried Elementals. "They hit us with Soul Tags to track us down. We've been Cursed. It's us or them now. We either destroy them – not possible – or trap them. The problem is that they are full Elementals. It's going to take at least a day to build a trap. We're in for a long battle."

"I'll call the Master, and let him know we need reinforcements," Sasuke said.

"You think he'll help us?" Konatsu asked.

"The Master is many things, but one thing about him is that he's loyal to his employees – and even his allies," Sasuke said firmly as he took out his radio

"He'll send support," Tofu agreed.

Mausu looked at the damaged corner. "The Elementals are going to have to break into two groups – they have to track us and the assassins. I hope those assassins can run really fast," he said. "Otherwise they're toast."

Maomolin watched the water pool. It was frothing and bubbling. "We may want to retreat ourselves," he said.

"I'm open to suggestions…" Tofu prompted. "Hideo hasn't called yet and said he was finished. We had to tip our hand a little early."

"Good point. Olaf?"

"Yo!" the giant called out.

"Be a good fellow and drop the rest of the building on them?" Maomolin requested.

* * *

Sasuke stood outside waiting for Olaf. "How will this delay them?" he asked Olaf as the big man walked out of the building.

Olaf pointed at the three-floor warehouse. "The building's floors and ceilings are all cement – i.e. stone," he answered. "There's enough there that they won't be able to just flow through it – it will be like a dam. They will have to push and dig their way out first. If we could seal them in solid stone, we'd delay them for years."

"Are you sure about this?" Sasuke asked again.

"Of course I am, lad," Olaf replied. "I've broken all the main pillars but six. The little bit of explosive I have will take care of the rest." The disguised Earth Giant gave a short laugh: "Trust me. I've demolished lots of buildings in my time on short notice. I know what I'm doing. The key thing is to make sure the implosion doesn't become an explosion."

"Couldn't we use a Circle to trap the Elementals instead?" Sasuke pushed.

"We've been tagged. We need someone else to cast a Circle for us," Olaf explained. Then he looked at the little ninja shrewdly. "What's bothering you, man?"

Wordlessly, Sasuke pointed at a large sign. Olaf dropped his head and covered his mouth to hide his chuckle.

"What's wrong?" Tofu asked the disguised giant as he walked over to the two.

"The building belongs to Kuno," Olaf explained trying not to laugh.

"Then he should guard his empty buildings a bit more carefully," Ono said offhandedly. He looked at Sasuke and added with a small smile: "Don't worry. We'll say you were elsewhere."

"Is everything ready?" Mausu called out. He was watching the warehouse threw a window. "Those things are reforming now. They'll break our Shields shortly and trip the charges accidentally."

"Come away then," Tofu called back. The others who had been watching the building ran toward the three men. Tofu turned to Olaf and said: "On your count, Commander."

Olaf waited until everyone was far enough away. "Three, two, one!" he called out, hit a remote, and the building fell in with a roar.

After the noise stopped and the dust started to settle, the giant stated: "Well, we just bought more time, but what do we do with it? We're a little light on effective weaponry. I doubt Hideo is ready for us yet. Any ideas? "

"My turn now," Sasuke said. "Follow me."

* * *

"Where are we going?" Konatsu asked the smaller ninja after fifteen minutes. "Those things will be after us shortly." In front of them somewhere, a large helicopter sounded.

"There," Sasuke said with satisfaction.

"Sasuke, I appreciate the escape route," Tofu called out. "But we'd only be leading those Elementals among innocents and we might get more soldiers cursed."

The helicopter landed up ahead. "Oh, it's not a pick-up," the little man called back as he waved to them to follow him into a clearing. They did, only to see the expected helicopter being unloaded by several men. "It's a drop-off. We need weapons, we got weapons."

"Done," Olaf said with satisfaction.

"Good, you can give me lessons with the RPG's, then," Maomolin laughed.

"Looks like I need to add Kuno to my New Year's card list," Mousse remarked.

They ran over to the helicopter where one of the crewmen saluted Sasuke. "Mr. Kuno said to tell you he has people working on traps and Circles about two kilometers away, but they may take more time than you have," the man said to the ninja. "We do have Sunstones to give you which will repel the enemy, but sunrise is a ways away. We have ammo tuned to Water for you, but do you have a plan?"

"We have someone making a defensive Circle about half a kilometer away," Tofu told the man. "They're a lot quicker to set up."

"All right, sir," the man acknowledged. "That gives you a defensive position, but those things will just wear you down eventually."

"I have a squad coming in from Nerima. None of them can be "Tagged"," Tofu answered. Kuno's man looked impressed. Tofu gestured at the new weapons and ammo and continued: "When they get here, between what you are giving us and what they'll bring, we can hold out until sunrise. Then the Sunstones will kick in and we can retreat to Kuno's Circles. Those things will be compelled to follow us."

The seven men (Maomolin had switch to human form) armed themselves and grabbed as many provisions as they could carry. Maomolin and Olaf loaded up on RPG's while Tofu, Mousse, and Mausu took automatic rifles loaded with special bullets. The two ninja stashed away as many grenades as they could carry. Everyone took miscellaneous throwing stars and knives. Then Tofu and the rest left the helicopter and its crew as fast as possible to avoid exposing the crewmen to the Elementals. When they were out of earshot Olaf observed: "Not bad for a plan you just made up."

"I loved how you glossed over trying to survive until sun-up," Mausu added off-handedly. "Even with Ciren's support."

"Do you have a better plan?" Tofu asked.

"Nope," Mausu said. "But you do…"

Tofu winked at them.

* * *

A/N: Next up - At the Circle


	4. Elemental Battle

Chapter 4: Elemental Battle

Much to his surprise, Mousse found himself the center of attention. Olaf, Maomolin, Sasuke, Konatsu, and Mausu surrounded him in a circle and hung on his every word while Tofu led them towards Hideo using a roundabout route. While he was not the tactician Ranma was, Mousse was good anticipating sneak attacks (having initiated many in the past). More importantly, he could sense where the three Elementals were. The monsters possessed a powerful Shield that foiled everyone's early-warning system until it was too late. There was almost no way to anticipate their attacks. However, whatever the Elementals used worked little too well – it created blank spaces in their surroundings. Mousse's overly strong Sight could locate and track the null zones despite the slumbering winter landscape.

"Olaf," Mousse said quietly. "We have one circling around to the front. He's going to try and cut us off at the bend two hundred meters ahead."

"Let me know when we're fifty meters away," Olaf responded.

"Any sign of the two missing Elementals," Mausu asked.

Mousse shook his head as he said "No."

Tofu let out a sigh. "I hope those assassins get a clean death."

"You can't save everyone," Mausu responded to the sigh. "Cheer up, if they can capture souls, it means the Elementals are not carrying any of those blasted zombies."

"I think we're a little far away for Henna to be sending zombies," Tofu answered. "It takes a lot of power to do that. That's one of the reasons she doesn't own the world right now – no matter what she claims."

They continued down the path until Mousse said: "We got one coming in at 7 o'clock. Moving fast – 100 meters…75 meters…Crap – the other two are rushing as well: 3 o'clock and noon."

Tofu stepped next to Mousse and said "Fire in the hole!" Everyone faced away from Tofu. "Nova Burst!" the Kitsune yelled. The flash of light raced outward, breaking the Elementals' Shields momentarily.

"Light 'em up!" Olaf roared. He struck the Elemental in front of the group squarely, scattering it. Maomolin managed to wing another, causing the creature to scream briefly. Sasuke and Konatsu threw grenades at the remaining creature, scattering it when the grenades went off.

The monster still standing vanished as it re-established its Shield. "It's still coming it – it's pissed!" Mousse called out. "Clockwise spiral pattern. 5 o'clock at 25 meters…6'clock at 20 meters." Mausu opened fire with an automatic rifle. One of the bullets exploded as it found its target. The Elemental screamed. "It's retreating," Mousse said as he tapped Mausu on the shoulder. It was doubtful the little man heard him, but Mausu understood what the shoulder-tap meant.

"It changed its behavior," Tofu noted. "It tried to keep up the attack."

"These things are sly. They're probably old Elementals," Olaf commented. "Not good."

"All right, let's cross this road and get under cover again," Tofu ordered. The industrial park was set in an otherwise heavily wooded area which allowed the hunted to avoid the water balls the Elementals occasionally threw. "I'll check with Hideo in ten minutes. We need to start working our way to him though."

* * *

Hideo worked to finish his Circle in the picnic area he was in. The area was between a local forest and a heavily landscaped industrial park that was empty for the holiday. Unfortunately, this was the worst possible time to build an Earth Circle. The ground was frozen solid and most of the vegetation was dormant. He had told Tofu this was a bad idea, but the Kitsune had given him that trusting look and just said: "I have faith in you." Sigh…

"Yo, Mage!"

"Daran?" Hideo called back. He saw someone coming up through the trees beyond the border of the picnic area, away from all the buildings. "I thought you were with Tofu?"

"I was, but the three of us had to boogie before Henna showed up," Daran answered.

"Henna's here?!" Hideo demanded in alarm.

"No - just a viewing port through a poor guy's Death Fail," Daran answered grimly.

"She Bound the assassins?" the Mage asked.

"At least their leader. He probably took the Binding for an extra bonus figuring he could kill Akari easily," Daran replied.

"Three of you? Do you have Akari? And is Ryoga with you?"

Daran crested the hill and looked around. Then he turned and beckoned to someone back among the trees. "Yeah, I do," he told Hideo. "I was told to get away from the battle, but the battle's not here yet."

"Do you want some help, _Master?"_ Ryoga asked as he walked out of the trees. There was a mocking tone to the last word, but it would take a lot more than that to crack Hideo's demeanor.

"None of your sass, boy," Hideo answered easily, relieved his apprentice was here. "We need a tight Circle against Spiritual intrusion. Start at the south end and start digging in," he instructed. Then he turned to Akari; she was standing just under the trees: "Forget about being in the way, milady," he called. "Bring me evergreen branches and lots of them. Bring anything that isn't dormant."

"Yes, sir," she said quietly.

Hideo watched her move away for a moment. Then he turned to Daran and threw his van keys to him. "She's in shock. There are some blankets in my van. Wrap her in them, but have her keep moving on the task."

"Shouldn't she be lying down?" Daran asked.

"A normal person should, yes. A Martial Artist? No. Her body will run until the danger is completely gone. Then she'll collapse and sleep like the dead until she re-charges, but we aren't out of the woods yet - keep her moving." Daran nodded and ran to the van.

With three people helping him (including two Martial Artists), Hideo had a decent Circle an hour or so later. He could now have them tighten and strengthen it while he thought about some offensive magics. Unfortunately, his phone went off, breaking his concentration. "Jouda," he answered suppressing his frustration.

"Tofu here. How's that Circle doing?" the Kitsune asked.

"How long do I have?" Hideo prompted.

"We got fifteen minutes tops - we need to retreat. These things are crafty - they are very old," Tofu answered. "And I only know where three are right now. Two are missing."

"Crap," Hideo muttered rolling his eyes to the heavens. "Start the retreat, but don't run. I need ten minutes. Is Henna gone?"

"How'd you know about that?"

"Daran's here. He's versed enough to know about Contracts," Hideo said. "Ryoga and Akari are here too - and before you start yelling, they're the reason you have a Circle."

"Ah hell. This could get ugly. I wanted them out of the way."

"And I wanted to be home in bed. Is Henna gone?"

"Yes, tell Ryoga he gets to play. Besides, if they try and leave, they may find the missing Elementals. Gotta go." Tofu hung up.

Hideo closed his phone and turned to see the other three watching him. Daran's face looked grim. "I'm in," he said without preamble.

"It's my fault we're here," Akari stated. She was standing straight and tall wearing the blanket like a cloak. Her Martial Artist metabolism had kicked in and her eyes were bright. "I'm fighting." Ryoga said nothing - he didn't need to.

Hideo didn't waste time. "We've got ten minutes. The Circle will do. Gather as much living branches as possible - the longer, the better." The others nodded as his phone went off. Hideo saw it was Ciren. "Where the hell are you?" he answered.

"I'm thirty minutes away, jackass. The roads are full of people and fireworks - Ojima had to give me a police escort," she answered sharply. "We have a game changer. Can you hold on for thirty minutes?"

"Yes. Don't be late."

* * *

Tofu stood in the center of the Circle and nailed one of the Elementals with a Chi blast. It had the effect of throwing the monster back and forcing it to reform again. The potassium RPG's were more effective in that they took a Elemental out for several minutes, but the Chi blasts were faster to fire. The problem was that between the Chi Blasts and the Nova Bursts, Tofu was running down – he had to start to conserve energy. So, he was saving the Blasts and used the rifle whenever possible.

Hideo was not a warrior per se, but as an Earth Mage he could use the evergreen branches strewn about the battlefield to drain the Elementals if they came too close. But like Tofu, all the magic took energy. "How are you holding up?" he asked Tofu during a short respite.

"I've been worse," Tofu admitted. "Our enemies are perplexed though. They can't figure out why we are still holding our own."

"Ryoga," Hideo said as he quietly indicated the young man near the front of the group. At Tofu's nod, Hideo continued: "He's not running down, and we have him blasting all the water balls and water jets away. That's their primary weapons and they can't reach us. How is he keeping up though?"

"Like Ranma and Akane, he's got a large power reserve. He makes the perfect shield…" Tofu started and then stopped. He swore softly and said "Bastard."

"Huh?"

"Happosai," Tofu stated bluntly. "Shield…He hinted to me Ryoga's true purpose and I missed it. I thought he mistranslated a word…the bastard knew exactly what he was saying." (1)

"Did he tell you Ranma's and Akane's purposes?" Hideo asked as an Elemental wandered into one of Hideo's traps and ended up losing half its mass before retreating.

"He told me Ranma's; more to let me know my Elders were keeping secrets," Tofu answered. Tofu shot the Elemental delaying its recovery further.

"Which is?" Hideo prompted.

"Ranma is the 'Defender' – which in the Kitsune tongue also means 'Steel Staff'. He supports everyone. He rallies troops and allies. He can squeeze victory from any 'Last Stand'. The more hopeless the situation, the more he shines. He's the king of the 'Second Wind' and the 'Second Chance'. Even now, I can feel his Power reaching out to us, recharging us and adding to our Strength – Power he pulls from the Nexus."

"And what about Akane?"

"Happosai wanted to keep me in the dark about her, but I figured it out anyway," Tofu grinned tightly. "She is the 'Sword' – the cutting edge that clears away the enemies. And she's on her way to us…Once I hand her one of Kuno's Sunstones, she and her Companion will be able to activate it and drive the Elementals away." Hideo's eyes widened and he started to grin despite the battle. Tofu went on: "Instead of waiting for the Sun to rise, we can end this battle quickly. Then, before the Sun sets, Kuno's Elemental traps will be ready. I swear, that battle will be on our terms - Henna will be very surprised when these three don't come back."

* * *

The Maranello pulled away from the cop cars as they slowed down. Ojima had forbidden them to enter the industrial zone unless there were civilians about. The Ferrari sped up as the traffic was now well behind it. Inside, Ciren was punching buttons feverishly as the dashboard lit up with several proximity detectors. A military grade GPS unit guided her toward Hideo's last known location. "See anything?" she asked her passengers,

Ranma and Akane were sharing the sole passenger seat (and its sole seat belt), peering out. They had heard Ciren's conversation with Hideo so both of them were staring out the windows looking for any signs of friends or foes. "Not yet," Akane answered. "It's after midnight. The fireworks are making it hard to tell."

After another minute or so, Ranma burst out: "There - 2 o'clock. That's Ryoga's Chi blast!"

"Got it," Ciren confirmed. She flipped a few switches and two machine gun barrels appeared alongside the edge of the hood. "This will give the bastards something to think about." A military radar screen also came to life.

"What's it fire?" Ranma asked.

"Potassium bullets - not very effective on people, but a clip or two will wreck a Water Elemental's day," she answered.

"You came prep'ed for Water Elementals?" Akane asked stunned.

"And Fire and Earth and Air. I've been in this fight over ten years one way or another," Ciren replied. "I'm still here, you'll notice." Her passengers smiled grimly. She flipped a few more switches and the car seemed to rise up. "We're switching to off-road mode," she answered before the question could be asked. "I'm not ripping up my car's underside."

Ciren steered left down a long corporate driveway. All the buildings off the road looked dark, but end of the road was lit up spectacularly by Hideo's Circle. The area around the Circle was completely blasted, but everyone inside the Circle looked "hale and hearty" – and defiant. The gang was holding their own using assorted Fire and Earth magics, Chi blasts, and standard weaponry firing extraordinary ammo. Hideo was maintaining the Circle and he had a defense of evergreen boughs well outside the Circle. The branches drew enough from the Water Elementals so that the monsters had to stop and restore themselves. Tofu was using blasts of fire fueled by wood that Sasuke brought him. Ryoga was relying mostly on Chi blasts. So was Akari, which surprised everyone in the car. Daran, Mausu, Maomolin, and Olaf were using traditional weapons with non-traditional ammunition. Mousse seemed to be shouting orders to the others and Konatsu had some type of hand grenade that seemed to be very effective.

The radar showed four Elementals attacking from positions of cover around the Circle. Ranma and Akane studied their positions. Looking at the terrain, it was obvious that the enemy had tried a frontal attack and gotten blown apart – there was glowing (now Blessed) water everywhere. Occasionally, one of the creatures was struck by the defenders' range weapons. It didn't retreat though, it just healed itself and tried again. Obviously, the creatures were determined to wear down the defenders and take them eventually.

"Are you two ready to go?" Ciren asked her passengers.

"Set!" the two teenage women replied.

"You're sure about this?!" she demanded. They both just nodded.

Ciren looked battlefield. "All right. We're going in hot - that will take out two temporarily and distract the others. When I put the car broadside, bail out the door, but make sure you tumble upright. Hit 'em hard. After that, heaven only knows!" she told them.

* * *

A fourth Elemental had joined the other three. Tofu sighed again knowing at least some of the assassins were now dead. Before he could remark on it, Tofu saw the altered Maranello drive into view. The tires were bigger than normal and the body of the car was raised high enough to clear them. Normally this would make a car top heavy, but the Maranello was *not* normal. Tofu watched the car swing wide off the road and across a lot. "All right!" he called while stepping into middle of the Circle. "Nova Burst on my mark! Then we hit the Elementals as hard as we can to distract them!" Everyone scrambled for position to place their backs to Tofu. The car's engine noise practically vanished and it went around a building to make a run at the Elementals from the side. "As much noise as possible! No magics unless the car is in the clear!" As soon as he heard the screech of turning tires, Tofu cried: "MARK!" The Nova Burst lit up the four Elementals. "NOW!" he roared and let loose a barrage of bullets.

The car flew back into view with tires screaming and a red laser light of a range-finder racing ahead of the car. When the laser settled on the side of an unaware Elemental, immediately the dual machine gun rails shifted to focus on the creature and potassium bullets smashed into the thing's side. Explosions blew bucket size holes in the Elemental until the creature lost cohesion and collapsed into a puddle. Ciren spun the car so that it would strike the next Elemental broadside. Ranma's and Akane's door faced away from the Elemental.

When the car hit, the Elemental splashed apart as the car's enchantments cut it off at the legs. The action made the other two Elementals pause in their attacks, but the car was not in line to hit them. As soon as the car cleared the puddle, the door popped open and the two Martial Artists jumped free from the still moving car. Ranma left almost vertically, so she could land facing the two remaining Elementals.

Akane was diving back at the Elemental that had been run over. It was busy reforming and doing its best to face the blue-black-haired girl tumbling toward it. The creature had risen to match the young woman's height when Akane appeared upright in front of it and shot her arm directly into its center. To Tofu's astonishment, the creature immediately popped like a soap bubble. This had an instantaneous effect on the two remaining Elementals. They spun to face Akane and shot massive jets of water at her, ignoring Ranma completely.

As with every other water attack Tofu had seen, the jets had no effect on Akane. Instead, she focused on the Elemental Ciren's bullets had torn apart. The puddle seethed as if in agony as bits and pieces of raw potassium continued to erupt in small pops and bursts. Flame appeared here and there in the large puddle. She ran into the puddle and immediately the water began to climb her jumpsuit. Akane let it get a few centimeters up and then plunged her hand into the puddle reaching for something only she could see. The water fell off her legs.

Meanwhile, the two remaining Elementals found out that it's never safe to ignore Ranma. The redhead shot Cold at both of them, trying to freeze them solid. That didn't quite work - instead the creatures' insides filled with icy slush, slowing them down. Ranma then created a low windstorm to further slow the monsters. At Hideo's instruction, Mousse and the two ninjas left the Circle and threw evergreen boughs at the trapped Elementals. Hideo and Ryoga joined hands and concentrated. The evergreen branches moved like snakes imprisoning them more and draining water from the Elementals. The creatures could not shift their shape and began to thrash wildly.

Akane walked calmly over to the closest one and somberly said: "This one's got two trapped souls caught inside of it," she told Ranma. "That's going to take a little time to separate. Let me take care of the other one first." Ranma nodded at her and Akane walked over to the other Elemental. The winds holding it did not touch her. The thing began to scream something at her, but she calmly asked: "How much mercy would you have given us? We'd all be dead like those two your friend has." With that, she shot her arm past the evergreen branches into the icy chest. The creature slumped into a pile of slush.

A short time later, everyone was gathered about Akane (and her Companion) as she slowly released two balls of light from the last Elemental. Once they were free, the balls vanished - the souls escaping to whatever Destiny held for them. Immediately, the last Elemental collapsed. "That's four," Tofu said. "There were five."

"That's five, there were six," Ranma corrected. "That's what delayed us."

"So, there's still one about," Ciren concluded.

"It's probably chasing the assassins. There still three of them at large somewhere. Something else to watch out for," Tofu stated.

"Then let's find out who's still about," Mousse said. He held out his hands. Ryoga and Ranma each took one. "Everyone face the other way," Mousse warned.

"On three," Ranma said. "One…two…THREE." The Nova Blast rolled away from them. Mousse watched for a few minutes.

"Nothing until the crowds," the Chinese gentleman answered.

"That's it? It's over?" Akari asked. "Really?"

"Looks that way for now," Maomolin answered.

"Oh good," she mumbled as her eyes closed and she collapsed - Ryoga caught her and lifted her up in his arms.

Tofu checked her quickly and then just smiled gently. "She's fine, just exhausted."

"I got her," Ryoga answered unnecessarily.

"Looks like fun," Akane noted. Then she hopped into Ranma's arms so the redhead had to catch her.

Ranma raised an eyebrow. "Could I at least change back first?" she teased.

* * *

Phone calls were made to parental/spousal units who demanded the truants come home. Kuno's people arrived on the scene and immediately confiscated weapons and ammo while cleaning up the scene as fast as possible ("They don't want to advertise their firepower," Tofu explained). Police officers were called in and made happy except for Inspector Ojima who was never happy anyway (Ciren promised to work on him). Sasuke made the phone call to his boss and was yelled at for property damage and then told "good job", "congratulations on surviving," and "go get some rest" - especially since he was suppose to guard Kuno at the wedding tomorrow.

Finally, about 2AM, the Onos, Akane, and Konatsu arrived back at the Tendo dojo with the Unryu farm contingency and Tofu's team. Kasumi, Nodaka, Soun, Nabiki, and Chiyoko were waiting for them with hugs, kisses, and scoldings. The stories were told while everyone ate mochi and toasted the New Year. Finally, Olaf noted: "Good for now, but what about the psychic tags? Those things would have put a tracer on anyone in the room when Henna made her little pronouncement. That Elemental still on the loose can't go home until it has as many souls as it can carry and it could be chasing those surviving assassins for days. We don't know when - or if - it's coming back. How do we break the curse without somehow tracking it down?" Tofu and Hideo shrugged. There were a few sighs here and there. No one was looking forward to a future ambush from a hidden opponent.

Kasumi broke the silence by asking: "Is that what that is?"

"Is what what it is?" Tofu asked curiously.

"The thread leaving you and Olaf," she clarified. "Mausu, Mousse, Maomolim, Sasuke, and Konatsu have one too."

"You can see it?" he questioned stunned.

"Yes, I didn't know what it was though." She reached out and seemed to pull something to herself. Olaf's eyes widened. "Doesn't look all that strong."

"No one's been able to break one yet," Tofu commented. He began to watch his wife carefully.

"Oh my…but I think if I…" She appeared to grasp something firmly with both hands and then yank her hands apart. Something shimmered there for a moment and then vanished.

"Whoa," Olaf said surprised. "I actually felt the connection snap!"

The others murmured in surprise - all except Ciren who waved her had dismissively. "Ah, that's just because you're still a pushover for a pretty girl."

Kasumi gave a small laugh at that and then her serene smile returned. She broke the connections for the other six. As she ended with her husband, Tofu stated: "That's got to be the quickest exorcism on record. Not bad, not bad at all."

Ciren dope-slapped him for the faint praise he gave his wife.

* * *

Eventually, Tofu and Kasumi slowly climbed to her - now their - bedroom. Both of them collapsed on top of the covers still dressed. They snuggled into each other and sighed.

"Well, you were right," Kasumi started. "We needed two weddings. At least today's - or rather yesterday's went off without a hitch."

"Excuse me?" Tofu half-laughed. "I was roasted by my Rogue's Gallery."

"You lived," she smiled. "Any chance we can get some of our hotel fees back?" she asked a little more seriously.

"I think so," he answered with a sigh. "I put insurance on the flights too. I think we need to stay put."

"I'm afraid so," she agreed. "You owe me a nice…" She stopped as Light filled the room.

"NO," Lord Jakaro said firmly. "You will be married - again – at noon. You will have a nice formal wedding and you will get on that plane to Hawaii. Life only comes around once."

Maomolin appeared at his side, nodding his head. "Henna just got her nose bloodied. She's going to be confused for at least the next month. I'm here. I'm still not 'brave', but I'm learning 'courage' despite myself. I'll be staying in Nerima at the Clinic while you're gone."

"I'm staying too," Jakaro said. "I'll watch things with Maomolin until you get back. I promise, my Son and Daughter."

"But…" Tofu started.

Jakaro displayed all nine tails. Tofu ducked his head a little. "That's an order, my Son!" the Kitsune Lord commanded.

"Yes, Master," Tofu replied humbly.

"Oh my," Kasumi murmured a little upset. "What am I suppose to call you?" she asked in confusion.

"Try 'Father'," Jakaro suggested.

"Yes, Father," she answered meekly.

"Good. I'll see you in a bit. Sleep well." With that, the two Animal Lords vanished.

* * *

Ranma and Akane were sitting up on the roof when Lord Jakaro appeared before them surrounded by an aura of light. In his hands, he held a chalice. Immediately, the two teenagers stood up respectfully. He said: "All right, you were wise to speak to Maomolin. We've convinced them to hold the second wedding. Olaf agrees with your assessment however. We hope for the first possibility and plan for the second."

"Which do you think will happen?" Akane asked him.

"Let me answer that by offering you a drink," he proposed. "Drink half and pass it to Ranma."

"What is it?" the young man asked as Akane took a drink.

"Jusendo Water," Jakaro replied.

"But we've already had that," Akane told him as she passed the chalice to Ranma.

Ranma started to drink as Jakaro said: "Jusendo Water grows the soul and increases natural powers. Both of you have already received that gift and it only works once. But as side effect, it restores strength and energy. It also heals most damage and clears the mind. That effect can be repeated after a few months have passed. You won't need to sleep tonight."

"I don't feel anything," Ranma noted.

"But you don't feel sleepy either – it's nearly 4AM and after a very active day," Jakaro observed. Ranma nodded his head and handed the chalice back to Jakaro. "I will talk to Othan and have him here by first light. Be ready." With that, Jakaro vanished.

Ranma blew out a breath. "Man, he has some presence, doesn't he?"

Akane repeated his gesture. "He speaks, we listen," she agreed. "At least he takes us seriously." Ranma nodded.

They both sat back down on the roof for a few minutes holding hands. The night was very silent about them. Finally, Akane said: "He's right, I can't sleep. I'm getting restless."

"Me too," Ranma admitted. "What do we do?"

She looked over at her fiancé and said coyly: "You know, I can think of a few ways to kill a couple of hours."

Ranma looked surprised for a moment and then a sly grin came across his face. "I can too…" he replied.

Akane stood up and said: "Let me get my gi!" With that she leaped off the roof.

"Meet me in the dojo!" he called out.

* * *

A/N: Footnotes:

(1) Tofu's and Happosai's conversation happened in "The Destruction of Ranma Saotome - Detonation", Chapter 3.

* * *

A/N: Next up - The Second Wave


	5. The Second Wave

A/N: The characters Othan, Banner, Jacobs, Pauls, Wales, Noa, and Lady Hoshi were introduced in "The Bachelor Party". The first five are mercenaries and friends of Tofu. The last two are Kunoichi. If you want any more info, feel free to read the story.

* * *

Chapter 5: The Second Wave (Wednesday Morning: January 1st, 2003)

The assassin watched the street below. The sun wasn't long up. A small number of people were already moving despite the holiday. That didn't bother him. They wouldn't hear or see him. His rifle was already set up on its mount, and he had set the mount resistance to his liking. He watched the few people on the street while waiting for his target to come by. The rest of his team was searching for the girl, but they had no solid leads since the first team vanished last night. However the boy was easy; he was well known in the town. It hadn't taken any effort to locate the dojo he was attached to. It was also easy to ask around about him. After all, who would ever think an 18 year old was a hit man's target?

Finally, he saw the boy running in his direction and there was a girl with him. A quick look through the binoculars showed the girl was not the one the team was looking for. Both of them were wearing their running clothes and maintaining a strong pace, despite having to dodge the occasional foot traffic. Their breath steamed in the air. The couple waved to passersby and seemed to be laughing about something, but the assassin couldn't hear anything from his position. Occasionally, they would bump shoulders and their faces would take on mocking expressions, but the expressions always dissolved into laughter. It was easy to see they were in love. A weaker man might have decided to kill them both and spare the girl the agony of seeing her love die, but the assassin felt pity was a characteristic of losers - or worse, dead men. He'd kill the boy quickly and get the hell out of here.

The assassin dropped down next to his rifle and prepared to take the shot. The sight was designed to focus precisely at the touch of a finger - the very latest technology. The target continued to come to him, so he waited patiently. It would be a head shot; as long as he hit the skull, the bullet would take care of the rest. Now the boy was in the arc of the rifle. He focused and followed the young man to the kill zone. Then he squeezed the trigger ever so gently.

There was a shattering sound as the bullet struck the pavement - it sounded like pottery breaking. The bullet immediately broke apart like it was suppose to, but there was no brain-matter for it to chew through. The pieces just got lost in the street. "No!" the assassin whispered harshly to himself. He didn't bother to try and figure out what went wrong. He immediately abandoned the gun and mount and jumped up. As he turned, he was surprised - actually surprised (which never happened to him) - to see the boy in front of him with his girlfriend next to him. That was the last thing the assassin remembered seeing…

* * *

Othan looked down at the assassin he found on the roof - right where Banner said the man would be. The dark mercenary lay there trussed up like a deer caught in the hunt, but aware and in a good deal of pain. All four limbs were broken in two places each. The sniper's limbs had been tied using what was left of his rifle. He was also unlikely to father children until after some very painful surgery to restore some important organs to their proper locations. Othan took at a cigarette and lit it. "Now, what am I suppose to do with you?" he wondered out loud.

The standing mercenary looked at the downed man. "The problem is," Othan said. "That you're not very useful to me." He 'tisked, tisked' at the assassin. "Children, children…" Othan continued. "They sometimes lose their tempers and forget that you can't question someone with a smashed jaw." Othan took out his handgun and the eyes of the man on the ground widened. "Oh, don't worry my friend," Othan told him. "While I have very little patience with assassins, the local police inspector gets very excited when dead bodies start showing up. Despite everything, he's not a bad chap and I'd rather not tick him off. Besides, while you're not useful to me right now, there are people who'd like to talk to you - very important people in the Japanese and Chinese governments. I think I'll give them a call. Do you have a preference for which one? I promise they'll both be accommodating - if you are." The mercenary's voice dropped to a warning note on the last three words.

The assassin mumbled in incoherent pain.

"The Japanese?" Othan asked brightly. "Excellent choice." Othan fired his gun. The weapon soundlessly (almost) fired a tranquilizer dart into the assassin's neck. Then he called Banner and after the greeting said: "He was right were you said. Tell Kantei's boys to come get him. He'll sleep for a bit. I'll clean up the evidence and move on. How's our couple doing?" He listened to the reply. "Damn. Get Wales to intercept them and tell them to stop breaking jaws. We need to know how large this group is. If they don't listen, tell Jakaro - he'll make them listen."

* * *

The Sensei of the Miyazaki dojo looked out on the bright winter morning from his doorstep. He was a fit man who had seen sixty-five New Year's mornings and he always greeted each one with a spring in his step at the promise of a New Year. Things weren't always perfect, but he always felt the good outweighed the bad, even this year with its rumblings of trouble. He had a good wife, three healthy children, a number of grandchildren, lots of good friends, and even a number of beloved enemies - one of which he felt coming down the street just now. He turned slowly and gracefully to see the Dojo Destroyer coming toward him bearing a tray of mochi and tea. "Greetings, my Nemesis," he said to Doe with a smile.

Doe never really smiled, but there was something 'content', maybe even 'welcoming', in his stance. Without a word, the moon-faced giant bowed to him and extended the tray. After a return bow, Miyazaki took a cup and a piece of mochi. Together, they sat down on the stoop and shared their New Year's tradition silently.

After they had finished, Doe stood up and shook the Sensei's hand. The giant picked up the tray and turned to go home when he stopped. There was a puzzled look on his face as he studied the roof-top of a nearby building. "What is it, my friend?" Miyazaki asked him. Wordlessly, the giant pointed and Miyazaki saw it - there was someone with a gun settling in on a rooftop. "I don't think so," Miyazaki stated grimly. Doe nodded in agreement, and the two started toward the building.

* * *

Othan listened as Banner relayed the news. "Ah hell," he sighed. "That makes three we lost now." He paused for a second and said: "Look, put the word out among the Martial Artists too. We need these jokers able to talk. It's going to be tough for Ono to get married if we can't nail them down."

* * *

Noa stood in the shadows up high spying on one of her favorite quarries. Ranma and Akane ran through the morning sun on their jog. Noa had enjoyed herself last night out on the town with her sister Kunoichi, and now she wanted to see something from the quieter side of life - young love qualified, especially these two. She admired their forms as they jogged through the streets of Nerima. "Maybe I'll sneak into Ono's wedding…" she thought. "It might be fun to see the two of them cleaned up. Lady Hoshi was planning on going to the wedding, so maybe I'll join her."

The Kunoichi leaped across to another building and continued to follow the couple discretely. After a few minutes, she noticed a black van trailing the couple. "That's odd," she thought. "People usually leave them alone when they run. Challengers go to the dojo." She slowly worked her way down to street level and shadowed the van. A lone man got out of the passenger-side and Noa dropped him immediately with a dart. The automatic weapon that clattered to the ground betrayed the assassin's intent. The driver of the van floored it and drove away before Noa could throw a bomb.

* * *

Ranma and Akane turned and saw the van speeding away from them. There was no sign of anyone else. "Do you think Othan's people did something?" Akane asked.

"Doesn't feel right," Ranma answered. "They don't Shield. This feels more like a ninja."

"Toshio?"

Ranma just shrugged his shoulders.

* * *

Othan held his head with one hand as he spoke on the phone. "What do you mean a Kunoichi snatched him?" He listened for a moment and said: "No, I don't think it's Konatsu. He would have immediately stopped Ranma and asked what the hell was going on. Just to be sure, have someone go and talk to him - politely! There's no reason to be rough - the kid's very polite and tends to tell the truth. Besides, if you threaten him, you'll have to unzip your pants to talk…"

* * *

Toshio Kuno sat in the living room of the Kuno estate reading the morning paper. The markets were closed today, and business was quiet, so he was indulging in the peace of the morning – especially after the excitement of last night. "Excuse me, Master?" one of his ninja asked. Kuno looked up at the man. "I think there's something on the surveillance cameras you should see." Kuno nodded, so the ninja walked over to the control panel on the wall. A wall panel slid up revealing a large television screen. The billionaire watched as his servant brought up a video and played it through. When it ended, Kuno sat quietly for a few minutes.

Finally, Toshio said: "Those mercenaries belong to the Council last I knew - they may belong to the Kitsunes now. Several of them are Tofu Ono's friends. At the very least, they've obviously teamed up with Ranma and Akane to draw the assassins out. That puts them on our side, but I don't like them putting the couple in danger - even if Ono and Tendo would tell me to 'shove off'. I want you to get a protection squad on those two - Sasuke is still off duty. Have the squad try not to interfere, but don't let anything happen to the couple. No permanent damage to the mercenaries under any circumstances."

"Yes, Master," the ninja acknowledged.

"Also, get another detail to the Tendo dojo." Toshio checked his watch. "Get Sasuke moving at 9AM. Tell him what's going on, and let him know I want him to be on top of this."

"What about the assassins, Master?" the ninja asked.

Toshio's gaze became bleak. "They are another matter altogether. Capture them and bring them in for questioning - I don't care what shape they are in so long as they can talk. If it's a choice between letting them escape and killing them…"

The ninja got the point immediately: "Yes, Master Kuno."

* * *

"Answer your damn phone," Othan growled. After a few more rings, he gave up. Instead, he called Banner. "Banner! Call Jacobs and have him bang on the doors of the Kuno estate. His ninjas just took two of the assassins. Go tell his bloody majesty that I need a fragging head count and I want to know who ordered the hit!" After a pause he yelled: "Yeah, I know if was probably Henna, but I don't want 'probably' - I want 'definitely'! Out!"

Othan muttered curses to himself while he thought. The Martial Artists were not cooperating. They thought of Ranma and Akane as their own, and they took care of their own - outsiders not welcomed. At least they agreed to share info - the problem was they were not exactly organized. Nor were they skilled at interrogation. Best guess is that they had three assassins, but none of them could talk (or walk for that matter). Toshio had two, which Othan was unlikely to see - ever. Othan had turned his two useless ones over to the Japanese. One more was in the hands of a Kunoichi by all accounts - and not Konatsu (of course, now he was involved after hearing of an assassination attempt on his friend). There was also a matter of an abandon van on the south side of town. Othan suspected the Kunoichi was responsible for that - there had been a similar van where she had snatched her first one. He sighed again. An assassins' squad was usually five to ten people. There were three at large from last night (if they were lucky) and another possible one now. So he was hunting for zero to four people.

* * *

Lady Hoshi sat on her divan, but she was not accompanied by her normal morning ennui. Usually, her world was neat and orderly – and terribly predictable. When she was younger, she had thrilled at the cloak and dagger games as she pit herself against the government, the Yakazu, and local corporations. Due to hard won battles, she was respected (and even feared) by all of them. Her successes had allowed her to found her own order of Kunoichi and then fight for a place among the existing houses. She arrived at the pinnacle as a Kunoichi Lady and Master, and gloried in it. However, as time went on, she came to a startling revelation – there was nowhere left she wanted to go. She had no great urge to continue the domino of business conquests, legal and otherwise. If challenged, she would destroy her Opponents, so they stopped challenging her – they left her and hers alone religiously. Hoshi became bored.

However, that had all changed recently. Because of her boredom, she was doing something that was utterly unthinkable a few years ago: she was letting her underlings get involved with Nerima. Several of her women had become fascinated with the place for one reason or another, and Hoshi had not forbidden them as she should have. Enough women were involved that the House of the Fallen Star had managed to inadvertently do something the Yakazu had failed at; the House had established a monitoring presence in that confounding Ward. The results were not what one would call profitable, but they were extremely interesting. Interesting enough that Hoshi herself was now involved.

She got up and wandered over to her desk to look at the reports from last night. Somehow, one of Toshio Kuno's buildings had collapsed on itself and no one was talking. Even stranger, Kuno wasn't showing any reaction despite the fact he must have known by now. There were no investigative crews from Kuno Enterprises, no building inspectors, and no police about the place. One of Lady Hoshi's women had managed to sneak a peek at Nerima's Martial Artists Book/Log and found no mention at all. Normally, Kuno's people would have insisted on reparations, but not this time.

"Does it have to do with the wedding today?" she wondered out loud. "If so, what?" Hoshi was very aware of the Tofu's and Kasumi's (second) wedding. After all, the House had hosted Tofu's Bachelor Party, which had proved very amusing. Amusing enough that Lady Hoshi had also managed to wrangle an invite to the after dinner party. Her phone rang; "Yes, Noa?" she answered.

"You may want to take a few weapons to the wedding today, Mistress," Noa answered. "There are assassins after Ranma and Lady Akari. The witch Henna has sent them. I'm taking steps, but there are apparently a lot of them."

"I'll notify your sisters," Lady Hoshi said.

"But I don't…" Noa started only to have Hoshi cut her off.

"I didn't say I was dispatching anyone, I just said I'd notify them," Hoshi said firmly. "You're not the only one with an interest in Nerima – or in the mercs. I suggest you pool your resources though."

Noa took the hint: "Yes, Mistress."

* * *

Othan's phone went off again. He glanced at the screen and saw it was an emergency beacon from Pauls. He jumped into his pickup truck and slammed the phone into a slot on the dashboard. Immediately, the dashboard lit up and pointed the way to Pauls. Othan stepped on the gas and flew down the street. In less than two minutes, he turned a corner and saw Pauls running toward him carrying a man. Just behind Pauls were a couple of ninja and three Kunoichi. The five would have caught Pauls, except both teams were trying to trip each other at the same time. Othan gunned the engine and sped to Pauls side. He fish-tailed the truck wildly, causing the five pursuers to leap aside. Pauls threw his prisoner in the truck bed and hopped up himself. Othan raced away with his two passengers.

Pauls came forward and slid in the open passenger window - some of the mercs could be just as nimble as the ninjas. "He's alive and relatively intact - a broken arm and leg. I took him off of a Martial Artist before the dude did serious damage," he said without preamble.

"How did you manage that? What happened to the Martial Artist?" Othan demanded.

"He's fine. I shot him in the leg with a tranq dark. It caused his leg to go to sleep and slowed him down enough for me to snatch our boy and run," Pauls replied. "The dude was cursing me as I ran away. I checked from a distance - he healed within two minutes. Unfortunately, I picked up company on my way back. Screw-ups dodged my darts and would have caught me except that they were too busy getting in each other's way. What the hell is going on?"

"Let's just say our couple is well liked by the locals," Othan replied.

"And Kuno," Pauls answered. "Who the hell's supplying the Kunoichi? Ranma's friend is a solo."

"I've got a guess - you should too," Othan told him.

"You really think it's the House of the Falling Star?" Pauls asked.

"Ranma attracts allies like honey attracts bears - people can't help following along just to see what happens…"

* * *

"You're getting soft," Pauls told him as they left the prisoner.

"Shove it," Othan shot back with a raised eyebrow. "And torture is overrated. It only took 25 minutes to break him."

"That's because assassin's have an inflated opinion of their own skin," Pauls said. "You're going to follow through and let him go?"

"Eventually. A merc's only as good as his word," Othan said carelessly. "Otherwise, who'll hire him? Besides, he gave us the truth - you know he did."

"It was either that or have you drive him nuts with your drugs and your double talk," Pauls agreed. Then he asked quietly: "How are we going to hunt down three squads?"

"We don't," Othan said with another raised eyebrow. He told Pauls his plan.

Pauls shook his head. "You're as nutty as Ono." Othan just grinned at his man.

* * *

Kasumi looked around her room one last time. She wouldn't be back for two weeks and she didn't want to leave a mess that long. "Out!" Nodoka sighed impatiently as she watched the bride check everything again.

"I just don't want to forget anything," Kasumi replied.

"Bull," Nodoka stated. "You're hoping that I'll leave just so you can run the vacuum around the room."

"I'm not that…" Kasumi started only to stop once she looked at the knowing smile on Nodoka's face. "Oh, all right. Let's go."

The two women walked downstairs to see Akane waiting for them. The youngest Tendo sister was holding the bride's dress and her own dress protected in garment bags. "The taxi is here," Akane said. The women were getting ready at the wedding hall.

"All right, Akane" Kasumi answered. "Let me say goodbye to Tofu." She walked down the hall to find Tofu talking on the phone in the family room.

"You have to find him quickly," Tofu was saying with a worried look on his face. "As I told you, we can only delay so long. Once the window closes, it won't make a difference." After a pause, he said. "All right, but you should call her directly. She's already at the hall directing the setup." There was another pause and Tofu finished "And Luck to you too. See you shortly."

"What's wrong?" Kasumi asked.

Tofu blew out a breath. "They lost Tatewaki. He broke his restraints about two hours ago and fled."

"Oh my. What do we do?"

"We do nothing, but go forward. We're the Center right now - or at least we will be. We can only hold that for a few hours past the time the wedding is suppose to start," he said. "If we delay, we lose it, and Tatewaki can't afford that. Kuno's looking for his nephew now. He's going to ask Nabiki to help since she knows Tatewaki the best." He stopped and yelled down the hall toward the kitchen. "Nodoka! Help!"

She came out hurriedly. "What's wrong?"

"Nabiki has to help with a search and rescue - Tatewaki Kuno. We need you to go to the wedding hall and take over," he told her. "Can you grab your stuff and leave with Kasumi and Akane?"

"Of course - my outfit is all set. Let me throw it in a bag and grab some makeup." She turned and ran back down the hall.

Ranma strolled in from the bathroom hallway in pants and a sleeveless T-shirt with a towel around his neck. "What's up?" he asked noting the concerned faces. Tofu told him, but before Ranma could respond, the young man's phone buzzed. "Hold on a second," he said as he glanced at the screen.

"Is everything all right?" Kasumi asked. "You look worried."

"Oh, everything's fine," Ranma said waving a hand dismissively. "Mousse is just bitching about me using all the hot water. I've got to go put on the kettle for Duck Boy. Excuse me for a second." With that, he walked down the hall.

Tofu's eyes narrowed thoughtfully. Then he pulled out his phone and texted something.

"What's up?" Kasumi asked him.

"I'm making a note to call that contractor that installed the shower in the dojo," he answered. "There's no way that should have run out of water, even with the crowd staying here."

"Father can…" Kasumi started to say. Then she finished: "Never mind."

Tofu just nodded. "I'll copy Nodoka. She'll take care of it." He pressed a few more buttons. While he was doing that, Nodoka walked in and said that she was ready. "C'mon," Tofu encouraged. "Let's get this show on the road." He kissed Kasumi thoroughly and guided her toward the door.

Ranma and Akane were discussing something hurriedly. As Kasumi got closer, Akane glanced at her and then turned and kissed Ranma. "Don't be late!" Akane scolded him.

"Yes, Tomboy," Ranma sighed. She kicked him in the shin (lightly) and walked out the door.

Kasumi followed Akane out the door and Nodoka was right behind them. "What's going on?" Kasumi demanded quietly on the way to the taxi.

"We're going to the wedding hall," Akane answered smoothly. "But you already knew that."

"Akane…" Kasumi said warningly.

"We're going where we need to be - and we're going now. Inside, big sister," Akane ordered as she opened the taxi door.

The driver was a Chinese man - Kasumi recognized him from Akane's and Ranma's first date. Before she could say a word, the man spoke: "I have the address, good lady, but I'm running late for my next fare. Please hurry." The driver addressed Nodoka: "Ma'am? Why don't you sit in the front seat?" Nodoka nodded and opened the front door.

Kasumi hesitated. She was trying to figure out how to get Akane to explain things, but she had to admit she was coming up short - her little sister really wasn't that little anymore. "No time for nervous brides," Akane scolded. The big sister was so caught off guard by that false assessment, Akane managed to get her into the taxi as Kasumi tried to insist that wasn't the case. "I'll explain once we're on our way," Akane whispered.

* * *

A/N: Next - Dojo Battle


	6. Dojo Battle

Chapter 6: Dojo Battle (Wednesday Morning: January 1st, 2003)

Tofu watched Daran drive the taxi away. Then he turned and demanded from Ranma: "What's going on?"

"Othan says we got three squads of assassins coming our way. Akane just spirited our weak point away," Ranma explained.

"Kasumi can hold her…" Tofu started and then stopped. "Nodoka," he stated.

Ranma nodded. "The assassins are after me and Akari. We know why they're after Akari."

"Othan have any idea why Henna is after you and not Akane or Ryoga?" Tofu pressed.

"No. Maybe she's starting to put two and two together," Ranma answered. "She may know about my Companion or figured out that I can tie directly into the Nexus - even if I'm just skimming the edges. She may see me as a real threat, even if I never fought against her. Either way, it doesn't matter. She's sending people after me, and I ain't backing down."

Tofu gave a light snort at the idea of Ranma backing down and crossed his arms. He raised an eyebrow and asked: "So what's the plan, oh mighty tactician?"

Ranma grinned. "Othan's already set something in motion. Akane is removing the complications as we speak. We just have to clean up what gets through."

"Disappointed?" Tofu teased.

"Hell, no. I'd never have gotten Akane out of here if it was more than a clean-up operation…." Ranma laughed.

* * *

Akane was miffed. Not angry, not pissed, just miffed. Her dummy of a fiancé had managed to get her out of the house and away from the battle using a most insidious weapon – logic. She knew he could be impulsive, she knew he could be silly, but she sometimes forgot that he could also be smart: smart enough to read a battle – or a war – and realize how the situation was breaking. Ranma had told her: _"They tried to take me out precisely and it didn't work. Now they're going the other way – 'Nuke 'em from orbit, it's the only way to be sure.' They're going to simply blow us up. You're the only one who can stop that."_

When she argued that she could come back, Ranma had nix'ed the idea: _"Mom has no defenses. She's a sitting duck. Someone has to protect her – and you're the only one I trust to do that. Kasumi has to leave too. The wedding has to continue. Kuno's dead unless it does. We don't have any options: you're the only one who can keep things moving."_ It didn't help that Apay had been chiming in telling Akane that he was right. Grrrr… She had to agree in short order, but she swore she'd make him suffer if he got hurt.

Now, Akane watched the street intensely looking for signs of the strike. She noted Martial Artists here and there. Every now and then, she caught a glimpse of a ninja (both male and female). "Still on our side," she thought. She was also looking with her mind for something even more unusual. After a few more blocks, she found it. She leaned forward and told Daran: "Turn right up ahead."

He looked back at her in the mirror, his Chinese disguise never wavering. "But, Ma'am," he started. "We need…"

"Turn right up here," she repeated. "That much C-4 is a bit more than Tofu can handle on the fly. I want a house to go home to."

"Akane? What's going on?" Nodoka demanded.

"Hush, Auntie," Kasumi said softly. "Just let Akane do her work."

Daran dropped the Chinese accent and asked firmly: "What do I need to do?" Nodoka started in surprise as Daran's voice came from the Chinese man.

"Just drive past that white box truck," Akane replied. "My friend and I will handle the rest. Then we're going to make a pass through the rest of this neighborhood - this is the launch area. The Enemy is in for a big surprise when they pull their triggers. This way I don't have to worry about my fiancé while I'm getting ready."

* * *

Othan watched the taxi cab through his binoculars. Daran's text sat on his phone with the coordinates of the first truck. Three more white box trucks had been located, but one was not part of the assassins' team - it had contained only produce. Of the other two, one was too well defended. Othan had decided to not go for the remaining one, just let the Tendo girl quietly take out both.

He had no idea how Akane's power had grown to eclipse Tofu's ability to drain explosives and gunpowder, but he didn't care - the RPG he had deliberately placed in the young woman's range was dead as a door nail. While he liked Ranma well enough and was familiar with magic, he had wanted a little verification of Ranma's assessment.

Jacobs came up behind him. "How's it going?" he asked without preamble.

"Our 'allies' out-number the assassins at least four-to-one. If the assassins are aware of the others, then they're overconfident of their firepower," Othan answered.

"Or the leader is Bound," Jacobs stated.

Othan shrugged. "So we deal."

"What's the plan?"

"As soon as our little lady says the sweep is done, we take the nearest truck and seize the comm's equipment. Then we flood the frequency to prevent any organized response. We come up behind them and put down as many as possible without gun-play. Firearms are only to be used if fired upon – not likely anymore," Othan said. "The rest of the assassins will either have to fall back to us or attack the dojo. Either way, they're screwed."

Jacobs shook his head. "Do you really think this will happen with no collateral damage?" he asked.

"Not a chance," Othan laughed as he started to walk away. He looked back at Jacobs and smiled. "It just won't be our fault for once."

* * *

Ranma stood ostensibly looking out into the backyard. In reality, he was using Tofu's training to scan the surrounding neighborhood. Then he calmly walked out the door into the yard…

* * *

Sensei Miyazaki was tailing two assassins as they climbed along a set of row houses not too far from the Tendo Dojo. One of the assassins carried what could only be a rocket launcher. Miyazaki watched the man very carefully as he closed in silently. Upon reaching the end of the row, the two assassins had a clear view of the Tendo Dojo grounds. "Should we just take out the house?" one assassin asked.

"We don't know where they are yet. If we hit the house and they're in the dojo, they could get away. Just be patient," the man with the rocket launcher answered.

That was good enough for Miyazaki. He edge closer and took out a blunted chakram – blunted because Judge Sanu did not allow edged weapons outside of the dojo and Miyazaki had a great deal of respect for the irascible judge. Just before the Martial Arts Master could throw his disk, Ranma Ono walked out of his house and stood in the backyard. Immediately, the assassin raised his launcher, but both assassins were taken out by a sliding tackle from a female ninja that appeared from the shadows. The man holding the launcher lost the weapon and he fell over the edge of the roof. The second assassin leapt up and retrieved the launcher. The Kunoichi was forced to leap back as he swung the weapon at her like a baseball bat, then the man aimed at the (apparently) unsuspecting Ranma. Miyazaki threw his weapon, but not in time to stop the assassin from pulling the trigger. The Master hit the roof to avoid the expected backlash from the rocket, but nothing fired. The chakram smashed in the assassin's back and knocked him over the roof edge to follow his fellow. The rocket launcher tumbled after him.

The cry of "Ah hell!" burst out of the Kunoichi as she leapt after the man.

"Damn it!" escaped from Miyazaki. He raced after her.

On the ground, the Kunoichi carefully rolled one man over. She was a woman of average height and in her late twenties. "Broken shoulder," she said. "And unconscious."

Miyazaki looked at the second man. "This one's just unconscious. He's lucky the roof isn't higher."

A second woman appeared and looked at the rocket launcher. "You're lucky too, old man," she told Miyazaki. "The rocket failed to fire." Miyazaki looked crossly at her as she pushed something on the weapon and a burned shell fell out the back of the launcher. "That's weird," she commented. "The shell is already spent. He mis-loaded the weapon?"

"Doesn't matter," the first woman said. "Let's take both of them for safe keeping."

"Nerima looks after their own," Miyazaki told her.

"These assassins aren't yours, old man," the second woman said. With that, she flicked a small ball of knock-out powder at the sensei. The powder expanded completely enveloping Miyazaki. She was surprised when he leaped out of the cloud, spun, and caught high on the forehead with a kick. She dropped to the ground stunned.

"Pretty good, old man," the remaining woman said as she launched her own attack. Soon the two were exchanging blows and blocks rapidly.

The still whole assassin suddenly rolled away from the fight and sprang up. Without a word, he was running toward the Tendo dojo.

The Kunoichi on the ground shook her head clear and yelled: "Hey! He's getting away!"

* * *

Maomolin was working his way back to the dojo. He had taken Chiyoko out for a private breakfast and now she was in the marketplace admiring the New Years decorations the merchants had hung. True to his promise, the shape-shifter had told his beloved about the coming battle and then convinced her to sit this one out. Fortunately, Chiyoko knew she wasn't a warrior, so she just made Maomolin promise to be careful.

He was now back in his battle form – the one he modeled on Ranma's cat form. The extremely large black panther stealthily leapt from rooftop to rooftop while looking for any sign of the assassins. He stopped and sat on the roof of Tofu's clinic and watched two men walk openly down the sidewalk. While they looked unarmed, Maomolin could smell burnt gunpowder from both of them. "Interesting," Maomolin noted. "Looks like the Little Missy tagged them already." He debated several alternatives and then decided on the direct ambush. The panther leaped from the roof and landed behind the two assassins soundlessly. Then he slammed his victims' heads together and they dropped like sacks full of rocks.

"Now what do I do with them?" Maomolin wondered silently as he kept a paw between each man's shoulder blades. "I really shouldn't leave them here."

Just then, a cargo van pulled up and one of Kuno's men looked out the driver's window. "Two tuna a piece for them!" the ninja called out.

"No! Six tuna for both of them!" a Kunoichi countered from a rooftop across the street.

"I saw them first, Cat!" a mercenary called out from behind Maomolin. "You cut me out!"

"Screw this!" the ninja in the van yelled out. He shot something at the mercenary that quickly became a net. The mercenary hit the ground and the net flew beyond him. The ninja was shot from his van as the Kunoichi flew in the passenger side feet first and slid across the bench seat.

"Serves you right!" the merc shouted as he ran up to kick the downed man. The ninja caught his foot and tripped his opponent. The Kunoichi shot over the falling man, missing him. Soon, the three were involved in a free-for-all.

"I think you're missing the point!" Maomolin shouted in vain at the trio.

"You talk?" one of the downed assassins asked from where Maomolin held him.

"The question should be, 'Is he going to eat us?'" the second assassin asked.

"Too much effort," Maomolin answered. "Humans are too stringy – not enough meat for the trouble."

"How about letting us go then?" the first assassin requested.

"Ranma's my son," Maomolin stated. "I'm afraid things don't look too good for you."

"Oh…how about we offer to quit? You let us go, we leave all our weapons with you and then we run away in terror. If it helps, I'm already pee'ing in my pants," the assassin offered.

"So I noticed." Maomolin pondered the proposal as he watched the fight. "No help there," he thought. Out loud, he asked: "Won't you lose your souls to Henna if you quit?"

"Our squad leader signed that agreement – we didn't," the second man answered. "Personally, I think a career change is in order."

"Hmmm…" Maomolin rumbled. "All right…let's give it a try." He eased up on the pressure holding the men down, but didn't let them up. "Your weapons – all of them; and I can smell them. Leave one out and you'll be leaving your intestines out." The great cat extended his claws enough so the men got his point – all of them. He heard both men swallow hard. Very carefully, the men pulled out weapon after weapon until there was quite a heap at their heads. "The blades too," Maomolin insisted. The assassins complied.

Finally, Maomolin detected no further armaments, so he let the men up. The two assassins slowly got to their feet and looked at the huge cat. For good measure, Maomolin doubled his size and grinned at the men. Every tooth was presented clearly. The men paled. "Well?" the panther prompted.

"Right…AAHHHHHH!" The men screamed as they bolted away from Maomolin – and away from the Tendo Dojo.

"They're getting away," the mercenary yelled. Immediately, the three combatants stopped and tore off disarmed assassins.

Maomolin noted that the three had no chance of catching the terror-stricken men. "That was sort of fun," the cat mused. "I wonder if I can do that again…"

* * *

Ranma heard a "whump" sound from the surrounding neighborhood. Satisfied, he turned around again and walked back inside.

Soun was looking through a set of binoculars. "You've got to be kidding me," he said as his future son-in-law closed the door.

"Nope," Ranma replied. "Sometimes, springing the trap is all it takes. What do you see?"

"All the assassins were just taken down by a mix of Martial Artists, Kunoichi, ninja, and mercenaries. None of the assassins' weapons fired. How did you arrange that?" Soun asked.

"I didn't, your daughter did," Ranma answered. "Daran's her driver. She swept the area and took out all the ammo. All the assassins have now is hand weapons - and bad odds."

"So, that's it? It's over?" Soun asked.

"Umm…not quite," Ranma hedged. "There's likely to be a complication or two. Keep watching."

"Oh hell," Soun muttered. "They're now fighting over the assassins."

Ranma sighed. He pulled a digital recorder from his gi and pressed a button. The sound of a foxhunting horn burst from the device and the 'Going Away' call rang out like yesterday in the courtroom.

Tofu ran into the room. "Where did you get that?" he demanded.

"Sanu," Ranma stated with a smirk. "He handed it out as a party favor - you didn't really think Ryuu knew how to play that thing, did you?" Tofu just growled at his brother.

Ryoga, Akari, Mousse, Olaf, Mausu, and Ciren all came running into the room ready for battle. "Maomolin is on his way back," Ciren said. "He took Chiyoko to breakfast to get her out of the line of fire. Konatsu is already about. Daran's waiting for orders on where he should be."

"The battle's coming here," Ranma told them. "Our allies are distracted, so at least some of the assassins are going to survive the initial pounding and try to finish the job. They have no firepower - Akane took care of that. We just have to deal with mundane weapons. Ryoga and I need to Shield as much as possible in case Henna takes a failed assassin like last night. The rest of you should too if you can, so we're going to cut up the yard into zones - everyone man your zones, and don't fire into someone else's unless you know where they are. O.K.?" Everyone nodded, so Ranma gave out the zone assignments. Finally he said: "Go!"

* * *

The Dojo Destroyer sat on the roof of the Tendo dojo while participating in the battle. Doe's strategy was simple: an assassin would enter the compound and Doe took him out with a hurled dojo sign. Unfortunately for the assassins, they were not Nerima Martial Artists and they had little defense against a large chuck of aged oak hurling at them at high speed. Fortunately, all of them were wearing body armor and would survive. The only thing that kept the Dojo Destroyer from dominating the battle was that he had to be careful; many of the residents of the Tendo Dojo were Shielding and hard to spot until they attacked an assassin. Also, Doe didn't want to hit any of the ninjas or mercenaries that had followed the assassins onto the dojo grounds – they were allies of sorts; or, at least, not enemies.

One clever assassin did have a sonar motion system with him that he had saved from the damage of the initial onslaught. He could detect several targets with the unit, but the same unit made him stick out like a sore thumb, and Doe took him out with a sign before he could close with anyone. A few of the assassins stubbornly tried to reload their firearms with fresh ammunition, refusing to believe that every bullet they possessed had been drained (which left them as open targets), but most of the assassins used blades or arrows, which the defenders were very good at avoiding and countering. Doe caught several arrows, distracting the attackers, often to the point where someone on the ground took them out.

As the battle progressed, Ranma and company spent most of their time trying to unsuccessfully stop the infighting among the assorted Martial Artists, Kunoichi, ninja, and mercenaries, but they couldn't guard the prisoners and watch for the assassins - especially since it quickly became obvious that the assassins were targeting anyone who was associated with the Tendo compound, not just Ranma and Akari. The dojo crew didn't want to strike any of their allies either, so words were all they had. Finally, after all the assassins had been spirited away, Doe watched as Ranma stood in the yard alone with one of the mercenaries and Tofu.

* * *

"What the hell was all that about?" Tofu asked Othan.

Othan just shrugged. "Ego, I think. Everyone is certain they are the best one to question the prisoners, except for your neighbors, who just don't like outsiders after one of their own." He nodded at Ranma and Tofu as he said that. "They just wanted to give your enemies something to remember so they'll stay away."

"Great. Now what do we do?" Tofu sighed.

Othan looked at his watch. "Ummm….it's 11:30AM," The other two men shot their heads up to look at him. "I think you need to get married."

"We are going to die," Ranma stated.

'Oh, come on now," Othan laughed as he turned away. "Your respective others are going to be too happy to see you in fine health. You might be a little deaf from the scoldings, but death? So not happening…." He continued to walk away and used his arms to pull himself up to stand on the compound wall.

"I need three armored cars!" Tofu called out to him.

Othan raised his hand without turning around. "Done," he said. With that, he jumped down on the other side.

"We got to move," Tofu said. "Gods, I don't even know if they have Tatewaki yet." He yelled out: "Sasuke!"

A ninja appeared on the compound wall, standing about twice as tall as Sasuke. He bowed to Tofu and said: "Sasuke is hunting for Master Kuno, Lord Tofu. Last I heard, he found the young master's trail."

"I hope he hurries," Tofu muttered as he bowed an acknowledgement to the ninja. "C'mon…" he said to his brother.

* * *

The Dojo Destroyer watched as the two men entered the house. "That's right," he thought. "There's a second wedding today." Doe reflected on the battle and then stood up. "Some of the assassins got away. They're going to try again, but I'm not going to let them wreck the wedding…" With that, he leaped to the ground and took out his phone…

* * *

A/N: Next up - "Tatewaki", where we see the flip-side of "The Other Side of the Looking Glass".


	7. Tatewaki

A/N: This chapter covers Tatewaki's healing from Tofu's and Kasumi's viewpoint. There's some text (about a third of this chapter) taken from the last chapter of "The Other Side of the Looking Glass" where Tatewaki's viewpoint merges with the newlyweds', but things don't line up exactly. The small mismatches are not errors – rather they are a result of differences (or split personality) of Tatewaki's internal and external perceptions due to his illness (two people will often see the same event differently). There's even a small time sequence that is switched around, which is done to show how loose Tatewaki's connection to the real world is. We also get to see what Tofu and Kasumi really had to do to heal Tatewaki… For more information, see "The Other Side of the Looking Glass".

* * *

Chapter 7: Tatewaki (Wednesday Afternoon: January 1st, 2003)

The men piled into the house bathroom for a quick scrub while Ciren and Akari took the bathroom in the dojo basement. The Bride's party was notified of the delay and the dojo defenders were forgiven - so long as no one was hurt. Akane did amuse herself by texting "Dummy" to Ranma every ten minutes or so, but Ranma knew her well enough - as long as she was talking to him, everything was fine. He just texted back "Tomboy" in response, which seemed to satisfy her that he was still alive.

By 12:30PM, everyone was ready and started to climb into the three cars Othan had delivered. Ranma's phone went off just as he started to get in. He looked in puzzlement as Nabiki's number flashed on the screen. "Nabiki?" he answered the phone. "Is everything all right?"

"Yeah, not quite," she drawled. "Where are you? I need you to come help with me with Kuno. He's out of his mind right now."

"Where are you? Are you in danger? What's he doing?" Ranma asked hurriedly.

"He's standing around sort of talking to imaginary people," Nabiki replied.

"What do you mean 'sort of'?" Ranma prompted.

"Well, he calls me the 'Bridesmaid, which sort of makes sense since I'm in my dress, but he's calling Sasuke the 'Shooting Star' and Cologne is the 'Rose Gardener,'" she answered.

"Cologne?"

"We're outside the Cat Café. She managed to keep him from walking away. Any chance for a pick-up?" she asked.

"Probably - hold on a minute." Ranma looked at Tofu. "Nabiki, Cologne, and Sasuke have Kuno at the Cat Café," he stated. "Kuno's in la-la land."

Tofu sighed and said: "Should have expected that. We have room. Tell them hold on."

Ranma nodded and relayed the info. Then he hung up and said: "Let's go."

* * *

Nabiki and the other three were indeed standing outside the restaurant as the three cars pulled up. Nabiki was in her bridesmaid dress, Cologne was wearing her dress robes, and Sasuke was in his normal attire. It was Tatewaki that caught everyone's attention - all his clothes were dyed red. Nabiki was waving her hand in front of Kuno's face, but Tatewaki didn't seem to be responding. "What's up with him?" the doc asked as he got out. Everyone got out of their cars too.

"He just shut down a few minutes ago," Nabiki answered. "He was talking about roses covering everything, and then he just stopped."

"What the hell has him? He's not really here. He's also missing his shadow," Cologne stated while pointing down at the ground. Everyone gave a small start as they looked down - Tatewaki was somehow not casting a shadow in the midday sun like everybody else.

Tofu shook his head in wonderment. "He finally ticked off the wrong person. He crossed a very powerful shaman, and she locked him in a Spirit Quest. I've never seen one so deep before."

"Can you snap him out of it?" Ranma asked.

"Only he can…" Tofu started, but Kuno cut him off.

Kuno turned to Ranma and said: "You were right, King of Hearts. Thank you for bringing the White King to me." Kuno turned to Tofu and said: "Please your Majesty. I only want to go home. Please bring me to the White Queen."

Tofu looked at him, then carefully asked: "Are you sure? You still have to confront your greatest fear."

"I haven't done that yet?" Kuno asked.

"No, not yet. It lies at your very center," Tofu explained.

"The Red King must give way to Tatewaki," Kuno mumbled. Then he shouted: "I RESIGN!" Instantly his clothes changed from red back to more normal blues and blacks.

"He's ready," Tofu said. "Let's go." He and Ranma hustled Kuno into their car. Tofu leaned forward as Daran got in the driver's seat. "To the wedding hall! People are waiting on us. Hopefully their attention isn't wandering yet!"

* * *

The cars pulled up to the hall. It was a large, very solid looking building consisting of granite and wood. "Lord Jakaro arranged for the hall, didn't he?" Ranma asked just before he got out. "That building isn't normally here. This is a vacant lot the Martial Artists often fight in."

"Details, details…" Tofu said as he motioned Ranma to get out.

Toshio Kuno ran up to the cars. There was a pretty young woman in her mid-twenties with him dressed all in red. "People are restless, but everyone's still focused on you and your bride," Kuno told Tofu. "Nerima is waiting on you two."

"Olaf!" Tofu yelled. The large blond man looked at him. "Let everyone know inside that we are here and the wedding is due to start shortly. That should keep the focus." Olaf nodded. Tofu nodded at Kuno. "Let's do this."

Ranma pulled Tatewaki forward only to have Kuno freeze at the sight of his uncle.

Toshio came forward and grabbed Tatewaki's arm roughly. "There's no time for that," he snapped at his nephew. "If you want to go home, come with me now."

The woman dressed in red grabbed Tatewaki's other free arm. "You're cutting this close," she said. Tofu led them and Ranma toward a side door. Nabiki also followed along, her curiosity getting the better of her.

Before they reached the door, Akane emerged and exclaimed: "There you are! It's about time!"

"We had to make a slight detour," Tofu answered her. "Lead the way."

Akane nodded and beckoned them inside and then through a small maze of passages in the building until they came to a solid looking door. Tofu knocked on the door and called out: "Love! It's me!"

A voice chimed back through the closed door: "You're not suppose to see me before the wedding!" Kasumi teased.

Tofu grinned and pulled a blindfold from thin air. As he put it on, he answered: "All taken care of, Love."

"Seriously?" Toshio murmured.

"Hey, it's bad luck to see the bride in her dress before the wedding," Tofu responded.

"Did they find him?" Kasumi called out.

"Yes! And I think he's in a suitable frame of mind!" Tofu answered.

"All right, come in!"

Nabiki opened the door and led the way in. The party nearly tripped over itself as Tatewaki tried to pause. Fortunately, Toshio was dragging him forward. "Oh my god," the younger Kuno mumbled as he looked at Kasumi.

Kasumi stood before them in a gorgeous wedding gown. The dress was a soft off-white color and was made of silk and lace. It appeared to have two necklines – the first would have made the dress an off-the-shoulder gown that was cut to modestly show the bride's generous bust. Above this false neckline, the fabric became a transparent lace and ran to just short of the bride's collarbone. The transparent lace also ran down her arms. Embroidered silk covered from her bust to her hips where the skirt of the dress fanned out. The skirt consisted of more silk and was overlaid by more lace. She wore a stunning head piece with a veil that had yet to be pulled over her face. Her face had a light application of make-up, although one could have argued that she didn't need it.

"You're b-beautiful…" Tatewaki managed to stutter. Kasumi blushed modestly.

"She does clean up rather well, doesn't she," Ranma agreed with a smirk. Akane doped slapped him for the comment.

"Don't get any ideas," a blindfolded Tofu added with a mock warning to Tatewaki. "She's already taken."

Kasumi raised her eyebrows at her husband. "Better make sure you appreciate me then," she replied smoothly. She sat down gracefully in a large soft chair and beckoned to Toshio and the woman in red. They half-dragged Tatewaki forward. "Tatewaki Kuno," Kasumi addressed him gently. "Your thoughts and actions have brought you to the brink of reality. You're on the verge of losing all touch with the real world. What do you want?" Toshio and the woman in red tried to speak, but Kasumi hushed them with a gesture.

Tatewaki forced his voice to work: "I want my own world back."

"It's not *your* world. You're just one small piece of this world," Kasumi pushed back. "Others live and dream in this world also – and they are not subject to you. You've never been able to accept this. You haven't been able to accept another's will – their own decisions." She gestured at Ranma and Akane.

Tatewaki followed her gesture and then turned to face her again. "I-I-I…" he started.

Suddenly the woman in red leaned forward and put her hand on Tatewaki's forehead. He screamed: "NO!" and then shut off suddenly in confusion.

"Was that necessary?" Kasumi asked the other woman.

"You're a bit too gentle. He needs to see his choices. He needs to understand his madness," the woman in red said firmly.

Tatewaki murmured: "He is hopelessly outclassed, and he can't even see it." He faced Kasumi again. "She's right," he said nodding at the woman in red. "He's mad… I'm mad. I can't stay this way. I can't stay here. I want to be real."

"The real world holds pain as well as joy," Kasumi warned. "Are you sure you can accept the pain?"

Tatewaki's face paled and he dropped his eyes, but he said: "I have to." He raised his eyes and pleaded: "Heal me!"

The Healer Kasumi Tendo responded: "As you wish." She cupped his chin in one hand and placed the other on his forehead.

Tatewaki threw his head back and howled. Tofu leaped forward and also placed his hands on Kuno's head. The woman in red also did the same. All three focused on him and a white light seem to burst from their hands. Ranma and Akane stepped back, taking Toshio with them. Nabiki had stayed near the back of the room and didn't move. The light grew brighter and brighter. When it grew blinding, Tatewaki screamed: "Akane!... Kodachi!... Ranma!… Toshio!.. Dad! – I'm so sorry!... Mother!... MOTHER!...MOM!" With that Tatewaki crumpled to the ground and all three healers shifted to keep their hands on him.

* * *

Tofu felt himself running down the corridors of Tatewaki's mind. He was leading Kasumi by the hand, and Kasumi held the woman in red's hand. The woman - Nari - called out: "Open yourselves up. Today - your wedding day - you're the focus of all of Nerima. The Nexus flows through them into you. It's a hell of a lot of power! Use it!"

"This place is a maze!" Tofu shouted back.

"But it's unraveling!" Nari shouted. "Tatewaki's trying to heal! Most of the walls are weak - they're not important. *You* know which ones are important - you've stood up to practically unbearable pain and come through! You know!"

Tofu remembered how Henna tried to destroy him. He remembered the thoughts that got him through the torture and the ones that allowed him to survive. Holding those thoughts in mind, Tofu looked at the walls and found he could tell the walls of delusion from the true walls of Tatewaki's being. With gestures, he started to shatter the delusions, leading his companions deeper into Tatewaki's psyche. Something like black lightning flew from each wall Tofu destroyed. The ground under them shook and rolled.

"I know that! That's Pain!" Kasumi called out. At Nari's nod, Kasumi joined Nari's hand with Tofu's and then took Nari's free hand. Now Kasumi raised her free hand which glowed brightly with Nerima's Power and she drew the Pain to herself, unraveling the black lightning with blasts of brilliant Healer's Light. The ground steadied under the Trio and they ran on.

Tofu lead them steadily towards Tatewaki's Spiritual Center. Finally, he blew through a set of thick delusions and stood looking out over a dark landscape. It was a huge, giant bowl carved into the ground, easily more than a kilometer in diameter. All around the bowl was a dense featureless fog. In the middle of the bowl spun a thick black whirlpool of mist and dust. "What is that?" Kasumi asked in a hushed voice.

"The Center of Tatewaki's Madness," Nari said grimly. "Tatewaki's true Center lies beneath it."

"What do we do?" Tofu asked.

Nari let go of their hands. "You find the Center and fill it with Light. I'm going to destroy the Madness," she said bluntly. As soon as she finished talking, she ran into the bowl, her shape growing larger and more brutish with each step. Meanwhile something arose from the dark whirlpool, looking very much like a black phoenix. Nari let loose a massive roar and the dark shape flew toward her at the challenge.

"Oh my! She's an ogre!" Kasumi exclaimed. "A real ogre!"

"Then it's a fair match!" Tofu yelled. "Let's go!" He pulled Kasumi into a run down into the bowl, angling away from the charging monsters.

The phoenix met the ogre with a terrific booming sound. Nari the ogre immediately grabbed it by the neck and plowed it into the ground. "It's not her Madness!" Tofu yelled to Kasumi as they ran toward the center. More and more of the black whirlpool flowed away into the phoenix shape. "It cannot beat her, but it can keep healing over and over again unless we find the Center." They paused at the edge of the thinning cloud. Tofu held up his free hand. "Flame on…" he said quietly. At that, Healer's Light began shining from his hand. Kasumi nodded and renewed her own light. Together they entered the mist.

As they walked through the timeless landscape, they heard various sounds echo through the cloud. A little boy weeped somewhere. A girl cried here and there. A man groaned in pain. Once Tofu heard Akane's yell of anger. Whispers tumbled out of the dark mist. In response, the two Healers drew from the well-wishers of Nerima and fed the Light. "There!" Kasumi called out. "There's a building over there," she repeated as she pulled Tofu toward it.

Tofu let out a whistle as they approached it. "O.K., that's being generous." It wasn't so much a building as a half-fallen shack. "He really is in a bad way."

As they neared the building, they heard a child crying softly. They looked at each other and Tofu led Kasumi inside the shack. As their eyes adjusted, they saw a small boy, barely able to walk, chained to a decaying female corpse in the middle of the room. The child was sobbing "I killed Momma" over and over again.

"Oh gods," Kasumi moaned. "No."

"The Madness is not outside," Tofu said in horror. "That's only a Shadow. The Madness is right here!"

Tofu let go of Kasumi's hand and drew himself up. A bright sword appeared at his side and he withdrew it from its sheath. Shouting words of Power in the Kitsune tongue, he sprung forward and swung his sword, not at the child or at the corpse, but at the chain between them. With a loud "chink" the sword cut the chain. Immediately, the corpse sprung up screaming to seize the child, but Tofu snatched the child away. The corpse turned to face Tofu, only to stop and peer down at another bright sword emerging out of its rib cage. Behind it, Kasumi said in low tones Tofu never heard from her before: "Masami Kuno was killed by a drunk driver. Toshio Kuno loved his sister-in-law and had the drunk driver killed. Had anyone - and I mean *anyone* - else been responsible, Toshio would have had them killed too. Tatewaki Kuno is alive. Tatewaki Kuno is not responsible for the death of Masami Kuno." With that, she twisted the sword in the corpse and shouted: "BEGONE!"

The child in Tofu's arms gasped, and everything exploded in Light.

* * *

Nari called out: "Enough, we got it! He's anchored again!" Tofu became aware of the dressing room again as the Light faded. He started to rise and then had to turn to catch Kasumi, who almost toppled over trying to stand up. Akane helped the doctor guide his bride back to her chair. Then the doc almost fell over except Ranma steadied him. Ranma helped the groom to sit on the floor next to Kasumi's chair. The doctor's eyes were still bound with the cloth to prevent him from seeing his bride.

Nari still knelt by Tatewaki checking his pulse. She glanced at Tofu and Kasumi in their tired states and muttered: "Amateurs… You'll need to build up more stamina if you want to be world class healers."

"So says the immortal…" Tofu returned. Nari just smirked and went back to checking Tatewaki.

"Is he going to be all right?" Toshio Kuno asked.

Nari looked over at the Kuno elder. "Well," she started. "He's got a good shot at it. As you guessed, he's never gotten over his mother's death and he blames himself for it. How anyone could consider a one year old child responsible for anyone's death is beyond me, but you'll have to teach him the truth that he isn't. I see lots of counseling in his future. Be happy that we got the instability though – that's a rare thing to beat."

"How rare?" Nabiki asked.

"It took three healers to do it, Nabiki," Tofu answered while still breathing hard. "And one of them was extraordinary." Nari smirked.

"The patient also has to agree that he is mad too," Kasumi added. "He has to want to be cured." She looked at Nari and asked: "How did you do that?"

Nari stood up. "Live long enough, and maybe you'll learn, child," she said as her shape changed and shrank. Now a small old woman stood there dressed in sack cloth. "Still, maybe you'll get the chance yet." She walked over to Kasumi and picked up one of the young woman's hands in her own. "You did good, granddaughter." She stretched up and kissed Kasumi's forehead. Then Nari turned and dope–slapped Tofu. "Take care of her, idiot, or I'll hunt you down." The blind-folded man just gave her a short laugh.

Nari walked past Toshio (who was now kneeling by Tatewaki) without a word or glance, but she stopped in front of Ranma who was dressed in his tuxedo. She looked him up and down. "How the hell is Genma your sire?" she wondered out-loud.

"You knew Genma?" Ranma asked confused.

"I know Genma, young one. I know who he is, what he is, and where he is," she answered. "If you ever have occasion to speak with him, remind him old Mara never forgets. On the other hand, never mind. Do yourself a favor and never speak to him again." Nari pointed to Akane in her bridesmaid dress. "Meanwhile, take care of this one." Then Nari spoke to Akane as the old woman hooked a thumb at Ranma: "Same goes for you too." With that, Nari opened the door and left the room.

Nabiki walked to the door and looked out. "She's gone," she stated without surprise as she closed the door. Tofu just nodded his head. "Definitely a '10' on the weird old lady scale," Nabiki added.

"And may you never find out how weird," Toshio said while standing up. Then he took out a radio and spoke into it: "All teams: Target achieved. Let's clean up and get out of the way."

Tofu and Kasumi watched Kuno's people bring a stretcher in and place Tatewaki on it. "Take him back to the estate for now," Kuno told them. "We will take him back to Hokkaido this weekend when we are sure he's stable." At that the stretcher bearers nodded and carried Tatewaki away. Ranma, Akane, and Nabiki followed them out. Once the door was closed, Kuno looked at the exhausted couple and bowed deeply: "There are no words for my gratitude. You've given me hope for my nephew. You've asked for nothing in return, but I am in your debt - deep in your debt - nonetheless." He straightened up and smiled then. "Regardless of that, what can I do to help you? I have a First Date I would very much like to start."

Tofu barked out a laugh and Kasumi gave her own light laugh followed by an "Oh my."

The blind-folded doctor slowly climbed to his feet with a small smile. "I suppose we should get on with the wedding. Could you please let everyone know we start in ten minutes?"

"Ten minutes?" Toshio said surprised. "You're going to be ready that fast?"

The couple nodded together. "We are still the Focus of the day - Nari wasn't kidding when she said we would have access to a lot of power today," Tofu explained. "Even now, Nerima is pouring energy into us. We'll be back up to snuff in a few minutes."

"Amazing…" Toshio murmured.

There was a knock on the door and Shizuka walked in. She was surprised to see Kuno there, but not unhappy. "I should have known you'd be behind the delay," she teased him.

Kuno immediately put on an overly courteous persona and bowed to the woman. "Ah, Mrs. Jouda! A pleasure to see you as always!"

The two clasped hands warmly and then Shizuka said in overblown tones: "I'd love to exchange further pleasantries with you, Mr. Kuno, but we do have a wedding to start. You know, you could make yourself useful and take Mr. Ono to be with his groom's party…"

Toshio looked at Tofu who nodded, so Kuno replied: "An excellent idea, my dear lady. Come Mr. Ono, before you're tempted to look. The look would be worth it, but you really should follow tradition." Tofu gave another laugh and allowed Toshio to lead him out.

"How much could you see through the blindfold?" Toshio asked curiously as Tofu took it off as they walked down the hallway.

"Not a thing," Tofu answered. "There's no point cheating myself or Kasumi. I was using my Other sight to respond to people. The wedding dress isn't visible to it."

Toshio smiled briefly, and then he said seriously: "I know you and I don't always see eye-to-eye, but I sincerely wish for you and Mrs. Ono to have a long and happy life together."

Tofu stopped and extended his hand, which Kuno accepted. "I know, Kuno. I'm not your enemy either. We will 'butt heads' again, but let's keep everything 'on-the-field' as it was."

"Agreed. And let's do it *after* the Storm," Kuno added.

"Agreed."

* * *

A/N: Next - The Second Ceremony


	8. The Wedding Ceremony

Chapter 8: The Wedding Ceremony (Wednesday Afternoon: January 1st, 2003)

Lord Jakaro stood in the workshop watching Lord Cronus review various logs. Both Kitsunes had all nine-tails on display to convince the other Kitsunes to give them space. "Well?" Jakaro prompted.

"My friend, if I survive the coming Chaos, I'm going to retire here. This place is absolutely wonderful," Cronus replied while studying the print out in front of him.

"I'm sure Tofu will be happy to have more Kitsunes in the city," Jakaro answered dryly. "Did you manage to match the outcome of this morning's battle or not?"

"Yes, yes I did. I managed to achieve a correlation coefficient of -1," Cronus told him.

"Which means you guessed the exact opposite of what happened," Jakaro stated.

"Correct. This is fantastic!"

Jakaro rubbed his eyes with his paws. He and Cronus were dear friends for the last several hundred years, but even Jakaro sometimes got a headache talking to Cronus. "All right. Let me guess - a value near zero would have been useless."

"Absolutely!" Cronus agreed. "0 would indicate complete randomness. 1 would mean that I got everything right. But with a -1, all I have to do is invert all of my predictions. So, the good news is that I can now predict that there is a 96% chance that your disciple and his wife will board the plane to Hawaii this evening."

"And the bad news?" Jakaro prompted.

"Open warfare in the ballroom!" Cronus said enthusiastically.

"Yep, there's the headache," Jakaro thought. Out loud, he asked plaintively: "Why?"

"Hmmm…." Cronus said as he studied the print outs. "I think one of the assassins escaped this morning's debacle. He seems to be awfully dedicated, but I don't know why. Anyone with common sense would have low-tailed it out of here. He's going to try for Lady Akari again."

"Any sign of Henna in your equations?" Jakaro asked in a resigned tone.

"Not even a random trace…" Cronus started. "Oh… wait a minute - it there's no trace of her and the coefficient is -1, then…"

"Then the assassin is the lead assassin and he's signed a contract with his soul in the balance. She's going to possess him when he fails," Jakaro finished. "I need to stop that so we can keep our secrets a little longer." He turned and started to walk away.

"You know what happens if you act on any of this information," Cronus warned.

"Yes, I know - all your predictions go out the window and there will not be time to factor my actions into a new set of calculations," Jakaro acknowledged. "But you gave us new information and I'm a big believer in Free Will anyway."

"Maomolin would laugh for the next week solid if he ever found out you were a supporter of Schrödinger's cat," Cronus teased.

Jakaro shrugged and said: "Laughter is good for the soul. Meanwhile, after the wedding keep working with the new information Maomolin gave us and what our spies are reporting. I'm going to delay open fighting until after Tofu and Kasumi have left. I'll see you upstairs in a bit." Cronus nodded.

Jakaro pulled out a phone and dialed Othan. "Yo," the mercenary acknowledged. Admittedly, Jakaro liked that the blunt spoken mercenary didn't worry about formality. Jakaro was an employer; that was all the mercenary felt was important.

"An assassin escaped this morning," Jakaro told him. "I can't seal off the building without hurting my mortal guests. The assassin is probably the leader of this morning attacks and is Bound, so he's going to come here. Lady Akari is probably his primary target."

"Are you sure there's only one?" Othan asked.

"No. There may be more. My sources say there's at least one."

"Do you think the other groups know?"

"I have no idea," Jakaro admitted. He thought back to what Cronus said. "Assume they do. Whatever happens, try and keep things out of the ballroom until after Tofu and Kasumi have left for their honeymoon. Contact me immediately if things get away from you - I don't care if I am in the middle of officiating."

"Done."

* * *

Jakaro walked out to stand by the altar dressed in his formal Shinto priest robes. He had Shiran and Yul in attendance with him. His third disciple was already waiting for them, standing with his groomsman. The four men all cut very dashing figures dressed in their tuxedos. In a normal Shinto wedding, the bride and groom would enter together (along with everyone else), but Jakaro encouraged the couple to make the wedding their own, and suggested various Western elements including having the bride walk down the aisle (something the Nine-tailed wanted to see for his own reasons). The "chapel" was laid out like a Christian church with open-backed pews to accommodate the 300 some-odd guests already in their places - normally a Shinto wedding was a very private affair.

Mieko, Jakaro's Shrine Maiden from his own temple, waited for him at the left of the altar. She was a 600-year old five-tailed Kitsune wearing the appearance of an attractive thirty-five year old human dressed in red - the color usually associated with the god Inari. The Shrine Maiden gave a proper bow to Jakaro and he noted the smile she was unsuccessfully trying to hide. Mieko loved weddings of any sort, and often volunteered at human and non-human temples for the ceremonies. Should something happen to the priest who was suppose to officiate, she would sometimes convince Jakaro to fill in. He nodded back to her.

He completed the initial purification ritual and motioned for the musicians to start. The audience murmured with surprise as they struck up a version of "The Wedding March" using traditional instruments. Happily enough, the group was talented enough to make it sound very pleasant and not tacky. He saw Miss Hinako in her child form peek around the door. She was dressed in a red ceremonial kimono that matched Mieko's. Jakaro nodded at her and she immediately ran to get the bride. Then she returned with Tomo by her side. The young Kitsune was dressed identically to Hinako and had been warned in no uncertain terms that if he screwed this up, Jakaro would make him a Shrine Guardian for the next year. Since Tomo had no interest in being bound into a statue, he was on best behavior. Both "children" proceeded down the aisle scattering red and white rose petals.

Akane Tendo came in next, looking very beautiful in her bridesmaid's dress. The dress had a light sky blue color with a decently cut bodice. There weren't any frills on it, but the fine silk fabric didn't need any. The dress itself was off-the shoulder and reached down to her ankles. Jakaro's eyes flashed to Ranma. The young man's eyes widened appreciatedly as he watched his fiancée walk down the aisle. Jakaro reached into Ranma's thoughts and planted: _"Maybe you should set a wedding date?"_ Ranma looked quickly at Jakaro and grinned ever so slightly. The shape-shifter was use to talking wordlessly with Ryoga and Tofu - Jakaro's abilities didn't surprise him. But he wasn't quite good enough to stop Jakaro from finding the image of an engagement ring that had risen unbidden in his young mind - a ring the lad had bought a week-and-a-half ago. Satisfied, the Kitsune lord didn't say anything further - or acknowledged what he had noted from the young man's memories.

Akane walked about a third of the way down the aisle and then Nabiki entered the temple, dressed similar to her sister. Many men admired her, but Jakaro was watching one man's reaction in particular. Jakaro noted to himself: "They've come so far, and yet they have so far to go. I may have to interfere - we'll see." Following Nabiki was Shizuka Jouda, the Matron of Honor. She wore the same dress as the other two women, also looking very fit and confident in it. Hideo Jouda's thoughts were closed to Jakaro, but Jakaro noted that the husband looked very pleased.

 _"You're a busybody, My Lord,"_ Shiran's thoughts sounded in Jakaro's head. _"Human's have been arranging their own affairs for thousands of years before you came along."_ Shiran had been Jakaro's disciple for a long time. The Seven-Tailed could tease his Master with an ease Yul and Tofu could not.

 _"Perhaps,"_ Jakaro admitted. _"Or maybe I just like happy endings. Once I become entangled with someone, I want them to be happy - even you."_ He heard Shiran's silent answering laugh.

Shizuka reached the front and stood with the other two women and the two children. Meiko had moved to join them when the musicians paused and glanced at Jakaro for their cue. Jakaro gave it with a nod and they started the Wedding March from the top, much stronger this time. Jakaro reached out and subtly adjusted the light in the entrance way as Kasumi Ono stepped into the doorway with her father.

Jakaro watched gleefully as Tofu's face paled and his eyes widened. The Kitsune Lord also tapped his disciple's blood pressure and forced it higher - he would not allow Tofu to pass out and miss Kasumi's entrance. After all his disciple's trials and tribulations, he wanted Tofu to see a very different kind of Magic. The bride looked absolutely gorgeous in her off-white silk and lace dress. There were gasps from both sexes in the audience as she started forward with her eyes held downcast. A delicate blush formed on her cheeks in response to her guests' reactions.

Tofu's mouth dropped open as she walked down the aisle. The Best Man and the elder groomsman also seemed to be stunned. Only Ranma and Soun Tendo were not bemused - Ranma had seen the Bride earlier and gotten the shocks out of his system then. He was more smitten by his own Bride-to-be (and she with him) right now. Soun was rock steady now; earlier, he had completely broken down and bawled for five minutes when the Bride greeted him at her dressing room as he went to pick her up. He only stopped crying when Akane kicked him in the rear rather solidly to get his attention and Shizuka shamed him very thoroughly into 'acting like a man and a father.'

As Kasumi arrived at the altar, she got a good look at her husband and froze. All the worrying and fussing Tofu spent on the tuxedos paid off - he looked splendid enough to drive the thoughts right out of her head. Soun tried to escort her the last few meters, but she wouldn't move. Jakaro heard Soun whisper to his daughter: "Honey, it's all right. You're already married. Come on!" The Bride still wouldn't move.

Jakaro looked over at Tofu to try and prompt him, but the Groom wasn't moving either - he was completely lost in adoration. Jakaro tried to mind-speak with him, but he couldn't get a response. He sighed internally and reached out to the only person in the room who could probably fix this situation: Ranma Ono.

Ranma reacted with a start when Jakaro's thoughts entered his mind again, breaking his pleasant reverie. The young man's eyes flashed to Jakaro, who made a nodding gesture at Tofu. Ranma looked at his elder brother and then at his sister-in-law. In a move very few of the audience could follow (had they been paying attention that is), he stepped around the Best Man and dope-slapped the Groom with a sharp motion. The Groom stirred and seemed to wake.

Of course, there had been one person watching Ranma, and Akane reacted with surprise at his gesture. When she threw a confused look at Ranma, he motioned at Kasumi and now Akane realized that the wedding had ground to a halt. Obviously, she needed to snap Kasumi out-of-it, but she couldn't use Ranma's method: the Bride's headdress and veil would become very messed up if Akane doped-slapped Kasumi. Besides, Akane could never bring herself to raise a hand against her big sister - ever. On the other hand, Akane's father was another matter, so she doped-slapped Soun at supersonic speed. When he glanced at her in confusion, she kissed her fingertips and touched one of her cheeks. Soun looked at his youngest for a moment and seemed to get it. He gave the bride a fatherly kiss on the cheek which caused her to stir, and he finished leading her forward.

Jakaro hid a sigh of relief and beckoned everyone together. Soun placed Kasumi's hand in Tofu's and then left to take his seat. Next, the Shinto Kitsune priest motioned for Ranma and Akane to setup the three sake cups needed for the San-San-Kudo ceremony. Meanwhile Nabiki and Daran brought in the food offering and handed them to Shiran and Yul. Once these tasks were accomplished, Jakaro performed the Shinto purification ritual over the couple, the wedding party, and the guests. He needed to take a few shortcuts due to the large number of guests, but he felt that little 'click' inside that told him the job was done properly. At the very least, there were no Onis in attendance.

Honestly, the next part of the ceremony made Jakaro nervous - he needed to announce the marriage to the Kami and ask for their protection. Unfortunately, for some reason, there were a lot of Kami in Nerima right now. Things could get out of hand very quickly. "Please Inari - please be listening," he pleaded silently to his shrine deity. "I may need help here." Jakaro picked up the scroll and read it precisely - even though he could recite it perfectly from memory. As he finished the formula, he (and several others in attendance) heard a great rushing sound even though the air was still. At the edge of vision, Jakaro could see small steady lights flow in through the back door and through the air of the chapel. These were nature spirits and were probably beyond what most of the Sighted could see, but they were making their presence known anyway - all the audience felt a bit of awe. Many in the wedding party were trying to catch a glimpse of the Otherworld as it teased at their senses.

"Please - we need your protection," Jakaro pleaded with them through his thoughts. "Not your interference. Please!" He threw the next thought wide: "Inari! Please help!"

Two new spirits entered the room from the back. These spirits didn't appear to Jakaro as sparks of light - instead they appeared as normal humans. One of them looked very much like Akane Tendo and was probably Kasumi's mother. The other Jakaro had met in life - Tofu's father. Together, they made a commanding gesture at the freewheeling Kami. With that, a sigh seemed to pass through the room and the spirit lights rose to hang just below the ceiling. "Thank you!" Jakaro thought to them. Tofu's father nodded in acknowledgement, but Kasumi's mother winked instead. Both parents then split to stand off to the side at the head of the room. Jugding from the others' reactions, no one but Jakaro could see the parents, but Kasumi had unshed tears in her eyes and Tofu looked very solemn - they probably felt the presence of the Blessed Dead. As Jakaro finished reading the next set of prayers, the audience stood and bowed before taking their seats again.

Jakaro nodded to Mieko and she performed a dance to honor Inari, the Kami, the couple, and their guests. As an addition to the dance, she had Hinako and Tomo join her. The musicians played with a slow graceful tempo that Mieko matched perfectly. Above her, the nature Kami began to shine brighter in response to her dance. Jakaro winced as it became obvious that the Kami were now visible to many people with the Sight. Several members of the audience gave short gasps when the Kami crossed their personal Vision thresholds. Fortunately, those with the Sight were quick to avert their eyes and not attract the Kami's attention. The Kitsune lord winced again as more Kami began to appear though. The spirits of Mrs. Tendo and Mr. Ono had to keep repeating their gestures to make the Kami behave and stay up near the ceiling.

Once the dance was finished, Ranma and Akane walked to a small side table and picked up a set of three stacked sake cups (top smallest, middle medium, bottom largest) and a pitcher of sake resembling a teapot. The musicians started a quiet traditional background piece and Jakaro announced that the San-San-Kudo will begin. Akane presented the cups to Shizuka and Ranma gave the pitcher to Olaf. Shizuka and Olaf then turned to the Bride and Groom. Olaf pour sake into the top cup as Shizuka held the stack. He then handed the cup to Tofu who presented the cup twice to the audience by lifting it forward and drawing it back. After that, Tofu took three sips from the cup and handed it to Kasumi, who likewise presented the cup to the audience and also drank three sips. The cup was then passed to Nabiki to hold. The second cup was filled and passed to Kasumi who presented the new cup to the audience then took three sips. She passed the cup to Tofu who repeated the procedure and then handed the second cup to Nabiki. Olaf filled the last cup and passed that to Tofu. Tofu twice presented the cup and took three sips one last time, and then passed the cup to Kasumi who did the same. The final cup was handed to Daran.

Nabiki and Daran then left the altar stage and walked to the front row where Kin Ono waited. Daran added some sake to the smallest cup Nabiki held and Nabiki passed the cup to the mother of the groom. Kin raised the cup twice and took three sips. The mother handed Nabiki the cup back and the three of them repeated the procedure with the next size cup. Finally, the largest cup was used and Nabiki and Daran walked to the bride's side where they went through the "three-three-nine" ceremony with Soun Tendo. When the father-of-the-bride handed the last cup back, Nabiki and Daran returned the cups and the pitcher to the small side table. Jakaro motioned to the audience and everyone stood, clapped their hands twice, and bowed to the couple.

Following the completion of the sake cups ceremony, Lord Jakaro had Tofu and Kasumi come forward and handed them a scroll. The couple unrolled the scroll and then Kasumi held the bottom of the scroll while Tofu held the top allowing them both to see the writing. Together they read:

 _We make this marriage vow respectfully before the Kami.  
We are delighted to be able to make our vows on this great day,  
and to become husband and wife through the blessing of the Kami._

 _We swear before the Kami to love and respect each other forever,  
and to strive to bring our family prosperity_

 _Moreover, we swear never to veer from the true path of matrimony,  
and to work to share the divine grace of the Kami by helping people and society. (1)_

Next, the couple walked over to another side table and picked up two evergreen branches from a sakaki tree. The branches were decorated with silk, lace, and ribbon. They presented these to Jakaro who accepted them for the shrine and placed them on the altar. Soun and Kin also came forward and gave Jakaro branches of sakaki which he placed on the altar as well. Everyone in the temple room then bowed twice and clapped twice. The Kami floating above everyone shone a little brighter for a minute or so and settled down once more. Again, people tried to ignore them although Ranma and Akane looked up at them for the duration of the flare up. Both teenagers looked surprised for a moment and then set their faces with determination.

Jakaro beckoned Shizuka and Olaf forward. They came and each handed him a gold ring. The priest showed the rings briefly to the audience and handed the appropriate one to Kasumi and Tofu. Tofu silently took Kasumi's hand and placed her ring on her finger. She did likewise with his ring and they stood facing each other holding hands. At Jakaro's command, servants began distributing small trays containing small plastic glasses of sake. The trays were passed along until everyone had a small glass. Jakaro then took a tray and served glasses to everyone in the wedding party. Finally, he took a glass and said: "Let us celebrate the new bond between these two families." At his direction, everyone took three sips from their glass, draining their glasses on the last sip.

"Now my friends," Jakaro proclaimed. "I have the honor of presenting Tofu and Kasumi Ono!" He turned to Tofu and added: "My son, while it's not strictly part of a Shinto ceremony: 'You may kiss the bride!'" Everyone cheered as Tofu lifted back the veil from Kasumi's face and heartily kissed the bride.

* * *

Footnotes:

(1) Adapted from the Tsurugaoka Hachimangu temple website. The temple is located in Kamakura, Japan (not far from Tokyo).

* * *

A/N: Next up - Dance of the Beginning


	9. Dance of the Beginning

Chapter 9: Dance of the Beginning

Jakaro encouraged the wedding party to form a receiving line in the ballroom - away from the Kami flitting about the temple room ceiling. The ghosts of Mrs. Tendo and Tofu's father had remained until the last of the guests had left. Once the room was cleared, the two ghosts nodded at Lord Jakaro and vanished. "Now what do I do?" Jakaro wondered aloud as he stared up at the flowing Lights from the doorway.

"You ask the musicians to prepare a basic dance piece and setup for a special presentation," Ranma Ono said behind him. Akane Tendo was beside him holding his hand.

"You two should be with the Receiving Line," he scolded gently.

"We'll get there," Akane told him. "But the nature Kami are going to disrupt the reception unless we can convince them to give us space - they are feeling mischievous." Her voice dropped quieter. "Or maybe 'rambunctious' is a better word. They're going to draw off the energy of the guests until they become visible to everyone. They're already drawing from the sacrifices on the altar and we can't - and shouldn't - stop them." Jakaro looked at the altar and saw that the food and sake were slowly disappearing. The sakaki branches were long gone.

"You're going to dance for them? Won't that only charge them up further?" Jakaro asked.

"Yes," Akane answered. "But we have…Friends…who can do something if we give them a path."

Jakaro dropped any doubts he had at that moment. He knew who Akane and Ranma were. He and Cronus knew about the couple's Other selves. There was a long way to go in some regards, but if the couple's Spirit Companions said they could do something, then they probably could. Instead, he raised an eyebrow at Ranma and teased: "You know how to dance?"

"I do quite well, thank you very much," Ranma said in mock-haughty tones.

Akane smiled and added: "He was a very fast learner."

"What type of music do you need?" Jakaro asked curiously.

"Classic ballroom dance music, but we also need to match our voices easily to it, so medium pitched instruments," Akane requested. Ranma nodded.

"Done," Jakaro agreed. "This should be interesting…"

* * *

As the Receiving Line began to wrap up, the Kami began to drift into the ballroom as well, curiously following the crowd. Jakaro heard Kasumi asked her husband in a whisper: "Do we need to receive them as well?"

Tofu watched as the Lights gathered near the ceiling. "Since they're not actually using the door, I think we can sit down. I'll see if we can find more sakaki."

"You will not," Jakaro cut in. "I'll have someone take care of it. Sit at the head table."

"Any ideas?" his disciple asked.

"A few," Jakaro lied. "Don't worry about it."

Jakaro noted that the musicians were setting up as he told them and figured he might as well sit down. He was sharing a table with Ukyo, Konatsu, Ryoga, Akari, Ciren, Inspector Ojima, and Mausu. He had asked for that seating arrangement from the Bride because he wanted the occasion to talk one-on-one with those particular individuals in a more relaxed environment - one where they held the upper hand. If you're going to be in a battle - and the Storm promised to be one - it helps to know your teammates. For that very reason, he had placed Shiran and Yul at other tables among other allies.

As Jakaro approached, his tablemates immediately stood and bowed deeply. With a pained look, Jakaro returned the bow and pleaded: "Please relax. It is I who am honored. I requested the pleasure of each of your company this evening, and Lady Kasumi was good enough to oblige me."

Everyone at the table looked mildly surprised. Ukyo pursed her lips and spoke first: "Fair enough, but keep in mind a Shinto priest normally receives some deference." Her eyes sparkled then: "Regardless of other titles." Jakaro flashed her a smile and then sat down. The others followed suit.

"Lady Kasumi?" Ryoga asked.

Lord Jakaro nodded. "She is the wife of a Kitsune Lord. Your brother has some rank in certain circles." He then went on to tell the table about Tofu's status among the Kitsunes and how a part-human managed to climb the ranks relatively quickly. His story immediately captivated the table both for the insights into Kitsune society and the insights into their friend. Jakaro had already known that everyone at the table would know Tofu's secret (including Konatsu and Ukyo who had found out fairly recently), and he employed a little Glamour to make sure only the table could hear him. He was not concerned that they knew who he was - his wanted their confidence and giving confidence was a good way of getting confidence.

Meanwhile around them, everyone else was settling in as well. The wedding party was at a long head table with two additions. Hideo had joined his wife at the newlyweds' insistence, and Mousse had also been moved to the table to avoid nine people sitting there, which was considered an unlucky number. Mousse's placement was one of the reasons Tofu had been so fussy about his brother's suit. Tofu hadn't needed to worry about Hideo's suit - that was Shizuka's job, which she handled perfectly. All the guests were sitting at round tables of eight, ten, or twelve people. There were a few children about seated with their parents - Hinako and Tomo did not count among their number.

Finally, Olaf rose and tapped his glass a few time. "Welcome my friends to this glorious celebration!" he proclaimed, grabbing everyone's attention. "Today, we are all very fortunate to witness the joining of two dear friends in matrimony, and they wanted me to thank all of you for making the effort to join us this afternoon. I won't bore you with a long speech right now…" There was some cheering from his friends about that - giants were known to be loquacious sometimes. "I'll get you with that later," he added. Now his friends laughed. "But I would like to raise a toast to Fate and the forces of this world that allowed our couple to meet and to marry. May the Kami continue to protect them." At this, everyone raised their glasses and drank. Above the party, the Kami froze in their random patterns and glowed briefly before resuming their motion. Everyone could briefly see them. Olaf hurried on: "Now, along those lines, please welcome the bride's and groom's siblings, Akane Tendo and Ranma Ono, as they offer their own celebratory dance for the wedding couple."

"And song!" Akane called out as she and Ranma rose from the table.

"And song!" Olaf agreed.

Ranma led Akane to a dance floor in the middle of the ballroom. The couple bowed to the musicians, who bowed back. Then the musicians struck up a beautiful flowing instrumental. The couple listened to the main verse once through, nodded at each other, and began to dance. Their audience was immediately amazed at the sweeping gestures of the dance. Both participants were known for their astounding agility as martial artists, but to see that transformed into a graceful dance left everyone flabbergasted. Even the Kami slowed their motion once more to watch.

The dancers stepped through two more verses and then began to sing. Once more, the audience was stunned. Previously, no one had ever heard Ranma sang as a male - only as a female. Nabiki often teased him that he couldn't carry a tune in a bucket as a male, and while it was true his female form sounded better, apparently his male form could at least do a decent job. Akane's voice was pure gold, but Ranma's was definitely silver, and together they shone. No one knew the language the song was sung in; for all its beauty, it sounded very Otherworldly. But it was definitely a language with tones and meaning. To many, it seemed loving at times and teasing at others; it suited the couple perfectly. However, there was something soothing about it as well.

Jakaro heard Ciren choke out: "Oh my god!" The Kitsune lord turned to see the Siren pale.

Ojima put a hand to her back as he asked: "What's wrong?"

"The song," she said sharply in a low tone. "It's about the Beginning."

"You can understand it?" Konatsu asked.

"She can understand any language," Mausu tossed out. "It's part of who she is." He looked at Ciren and asked: "What language is it?"

Ciren shook herself. "None from around here," she answered. With another shake of her head, she added: "It's not of this world."

"It sort of sounds like an Elemental language, but only sort of…" Jakaro said hesitatingly.

"Big emphasis on 'sort of,'" Ciren said as she swept her hands through her hair and pulled herself back together. "No earthly creature has ever sung that song before."

"What? They're inventing a language on the spot?" Ukyo asked confused.

"I'm not explaining this right," Ciren said with a little frustration. She stopped to listen further to the song. "The song is about the Creation."

"The Creation of the World?" Ryoga asked.

"No, the Creation of the Universe," Ciren stated. "The song is literally about the Big Bang. It sounds like an argument because it is. Fire and Wind - *the* Fire and *the* Wind - are arguing about who came first - they're the original singers. Akane's singing for Fire and Ranma's singing for Wind."

"That's not a surprise," Ojima said understatedly.

"The Big Bang?" Konatsu pressed. "You mean the fireball that supposedly started the Universe billions of years ago?"

"And that's the first point of Fire's argument," Ciren replied. "She's claiming she was present in that fireball. Wind is countering that there was no fireball - there was nothing to burn. There were just vibrations in a tiny space - a space that expanded rapidly. He's claiming he was the expansion. She'd have nowhere to be without him. She replied that those vibrations were energy - her - and they defined where 'where' was. He'd have nothing to reference unless she was there first."

"Say what?" the Inspector exclaimed exasperatedly.

"Oh, it gets worse," Ciren went on. "Wind replied that Fire involves matter and there was only unchanging vibrations - matter didn't come into existence until many moments after the Creation. Fire challenged that matter and energy were constantly in flux then - that virtual particles existed at the very first instant."

"Virtual particles?" Ukyo asked confused.

"Forget it," Ciren dismissed. "There's no way I'm going to explain Quantum Physics in five seconds - I'm not sure I could explain it in five years…"

"I'm sorry," Mausu cut in. "Did you just say Ranma - our Ranma - and Akane - our Akane - are ballroom dancing and *singing* a discussion on Quantum Physics in another tongue?"

"Ohhh, they're the ones dancing all right," Ojima answered for Ciren. He was staring hard at the couple on the dance floor. "But they are *not* the ones singing."

"That's nonsense!" Ukyo insisted.

"And I think you're right," Ciren stated. She paused to listen again. "It is nonsense. The singers don't even believe their own arguments. They are just bantering and teasing one another. The song has another purpose - but I haven't figured it out yet."

Jakaro looked at the ceiling and watched the Kami. "Well, I know one purpose…" he said. The Kami were starting to circle high above the dancing couple, following them across the dance floor. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that Ryoga had gone very quiet.

"I see them," Ojima agreed. "They're nature Kami - spirits associated with Wind, Fire, Earth, and Water. There are even full Elementals up there - and more arriving every second." Jakaro nodded in agreement. "They started to show up when you called the Kami to witness the wedding, but I've never seen so many before - or seen them act so wildly."

"They've been drifting into the city in large numbers since Christmas Day," Jakaro added. "If that continues, we may have a problem."

"No, you won't," a young voice stated. It had come from Ryoga's mouth. "My Brother and Sister are taking care of it right now - they're telling the Kami who they are without announcing it by singing that song." Ryoga's eyes were glowing. Akari reached out and held his hand. He squeezed her hand back.

"Are you all right?" Ukyo demanded from Ryoga.

"He's fine," Akari assured her. "Ryoga is still with us, but he's also a Guardian for a special spirit, and that spirit is talking to us now with Ryoga's blessing."

"He's possessed?" Konatsu asked.

"No, he's not," the young voice answered.

Ryoga's eyes stopped glowing and Ryoga's adult voice added: "As Akari said, I'm the Guardian for a special spirit - a soul - that was imprisoned for a long time. He's too weak to be on his own, so I protect him until he's strong enough. But he can hear and see through me, and even act through me when we both feel the need arise. He can also be very wise - and he has answers if you're interested." The Lost Boy said the last few words off-handedly.

"Start talking," Mausu ordered. The rest were nodding.

Ryoga's eyes started to glow again and a young voice laughed from his mouth. With a smile, the voice continued: "Fire and Wind sang that song billions of years before this World was created - and over a billion years after They were created. They sang that Song to two very scared and frightened Children on a newly formed World - the first that could ever bear life in this Universe." At everyone's confused look, the voice added: "They sang the song to Earth and Water - the primordial Earth and Water spirits - just after the new spirits became aware enough to be sentient." The voice laughed again at their astonished looks.

Ciren concentrated on the song again. Then she raised her eyebrows at Ryoga and the Other. "That song is *not* what I called reassuring," she said firmly. "Although the singers are fond of each other, it's more like a rendition of 'Anything you can do, I can do better'."

"But it was reassuring," the voice from Ryoga's mouth insisted. "Earth - my Parent - was very afraid of being alone. Water was too. They didn't understand anything - including each Other - yet there They were. Then two Entities appeared and tried to soothe them, which failed miserably. When Fire and Wind finally understood the Children's fears, the two elders knew sympathy wouldn't work, so instead they began to sing that song, which got more and more ridiculous as it went on."

"I see," Akari stated, her wisdom kicking in. "Ying and Yang." Ciren made a hand motion to continue, so Akari did: "The song's argument has no resolution - it is nonsense. Neither came first. Fire and Wind were born at the same moment. Same with Earth and Water - they came in together and were very afraid of being separated by the Universe. Then Fire and Wind showed them that there was no such thing as separation."

"After they nearly drove Earth and Water nuts with their banter," the young voice agreed with a laugh.

"And the children of the Primordials remember and understand," Jakaro stated. Then he raised an eyebrow at Ryoga. "And special ones can even sing the original song." Ryoga nodded.

On the dance floor, Ranma and Akane continued to sing and dance, but the Kami no longer circled on the ceiling. Instead, they circled the couple. Now the Kami were visible to everyone as they glowed brightly. As the audience watched, the Kami spun faster and faster around the couple, forming a laser-like spiral. Suddenly, Ranma's and Akane's eyes glowed and the couple stopped their song (but not the dance) to speak a single phrase to the Kami together. The Kami streamed away to circle three times around Tofu and Kasumi. From there, the Lights flew in a circle around Ryoga and then flowed toward the ceiling, only to vanish from sight before striking the ceiling.

Back on the floor, the couple continued to dance, but had stopped singing. The lead musician signaled to the couple and, at their nod, started to wrap the piece up. Akane and Ranma finished their dance with a dramatic flair timed to the song's ending. The entire room rose to their feet and applauded the young couple, including the Bride and Groom. The teenagers bowed to the room and Ranma led Akane back to their seats at the head table.

"What did they say to the Kami?" Mausu asked Ciren.

Jakaro answered for her. "They - or rather their Companions - said: 'Behave.' Once they established who they were, that's all it took. They spoke the local Elemental language." Ciren nodded her head in agreement.

* * *

On the roof of an odd building three assassins readied their weapons and prepared to break in through a skylight. "All right," one of them said to the others. "We break in, find the vent ducts, find the girl, and kill her quickly. If we find the boy, great. If not, we get the hell out anyway. The original contract is for the girl. She's what we need to get paid - and be free.

* * *

Noa watched the assassins slip intothe third floor. Lady Hoshi had given her blessing for twenty of Noa's Sisters to join her. The goal was to capture one of the assassins alive and bring him/her to Lady Hoshi. The other assassins were expendable.

"And if we get a chance to return a little one-upmanship, so much the better," she thought. "Or pinch a backside or two…" she added with a grin.

* * *

Sensei Miyazaki leaped from the rooftop and shot across the distance to the dance hall as dusk was descending. He landed silently and made room for the others. The Tendos and Onos belonged to Nerima - and Nerima looked after its own. It was time these uppity merc's learned this, and the best way to show that was to get the remaining assassins…

* * *

Next up: Chaos Rising


	10. Chaos Rising

Chapter 10: Chaos Rising

Ojima walked back from the restroom and paused at a window to look out into the early evening. Most of the speeches were done and dinner had been served. For the most part, people (humans and non-humans) had behaved. Oh, there had been some good-natured teasing and ribbing, but nothing outrageous. His Sight was a little out of control, but given all the supernatural creatures that wasn't really unusual. However, the policeman inside him had been able to relax and that was wonderful. "Still," he thought. "Reality is going to hit soon. This much peace with all the major players here is unnatural. There's going to be a backlash. This morning's events weren't enough."

"You are the eternal pessimist," Ciren teased from behind him.

He turned to her surprised. "I never felt you sneak up. How did you do that?" he asked.

"I'm a survivor, my friend. I wouldn't have lasted long if I couldn't be unobtrusive," she laughed.

He smiled a little at that. Her eyes sparkled at the expression because he seldom used it except around her and she knew it. "I could definitely get used to her presence," he thought. Out loud he said mockingly: "Are you a mind-reader now?" He knew she wasn't - it just wasn't one of her abilities. Truth be known, he was closer to a mind-reader than she was.

"No, I'm just very good at reading faces - especially yours," she replied. "The party's past the high point. We're into the dancing now. Then the cake, and people will start to go home. And you're already thinking about what's next."

"That's my job," he told her. "I need to stay one step ahead; and that's tough in Nerima. The major powers have all agreed to behave. The problem with that is they're all concentrated here - which means no one is watching the smaller powers."

Ciren shook her head at him and then walked up to him. She put a hand under his chin and gave him a very serious kiss. Ojima returned it with interest, feeling the Siren's Call echo up and down his spine. When they finally stopped, the two just stared into each other's eyes enjoying the moment. Eventually, someone opened the door to the ballroom and the loud music snapped them out of their private trance. They both sighed and turned to look out the window together. "I noticed you didn't tell me I was wrong," he said quietly.

Ciren shook her head. "I know better. I'm just enjoying the peace with you before the madness starts again. I've been watching Jakaro carefully. I've been around Kitsunes quite a bit and something's up. Somewhere, somehow, he has a tiger by the tail. He's hoping to keep the beast restrained until Tofu and Kasumi leave, which will be in two hours. After that, look to him to get everyone out of here."

"Given who he is, what could really make him sweat like that?" Ojima wondered.

"Henna for one thing," Ciren stated. "People in general." She shrugged. "Humanity gives foxes a good deal of trouble. A fox's power is in its cunning and cleverness, while ours is in strength and ruthlessness. Kitsunes have learned to not directly confront humans, but to sidestep them whenever possible. Lord Jakaro is powerful, but he'll follow that rule too."

The inspector reflected on that. "So, whatever is out there is likely to be human, and he's going to delay and distract it until he can just leave it in the dust." She nodded her head. "But if it's human, it's going to have to be cleaned up after." Now she looked at him questioningly. "We tend to leave big messes," he explained. She just sighed at that.

After a few minutes, she asked: "Can you dance?"

"Not a step," he answered.

"Good. I can't either. Let's go give it a try," she said.

The small smile returned and he took her hand.

* * *

Judge Sanu watched the dancers with his loyal henchman as the two drank whiskey sours. "Looks like they are getting the cake ready," Ryuu observed. Sanu nodded. Ryuu held his peace for a full two minutes before he asked: "When are you going to tell Ojima to get back to work?"

The Judge looked at the police inspector, whose official title was 'Chief Inspector' even though it really should have been 'Superintendent' or 'Assistant Commissioner' like in other Tokyo Wards. As it was, Ojima insisted that everyone simply call him 'Inspector'. The policeman and his partner were being taught to dance by the Bride and Groom - something that involved a lot of laughing from everyone involved but Ojima, who was at least smiling.

Sanu sighed and said: "He's suppose to have the day off."

"The other inspectors are political animals and damn close to useless," Ryuu reminded him.

Sanu sighed again. "Call that Sergeant who runs the police station closest to Ucchan's - Imia is his name. He's got a brain and he's a Martial Artist; Ojima trusts him too. Have him assemble a crack team to deal with a possible riot using my authority. Have him call me when he's ready."

"All right, but when are you going to tell Ojima," Ryuu pressed.

Sanu raised an eyebrow and answered: "As late in the game as I can."

* * *

Tomo was practicing using small Glamour spells to score dances with some of the younger ladies. He could make himself taller and look a bit older. It also helped that he knew how to dance from crashing some of the Tokyo Raves. He had some success with the women from outside of Nerima, but the Nerima ladies were tough to fool. Many of them had the Sight and could see through the Glamour. Others were intelligent and knew about him. Akane Tendo had bopped him on the head before she danced with him. So did Nabiki Tendo. The Bride, Miss Hinako, and Ms. Saotome had indulged him, but made a point of calling him by his real name. He had tried to score some one-upmanship points by asking Cologne, the old Amazon Elder, but she promptly announced she love to dance with someone mythical. Tomo was a good enough sport to carry through on the offer though. Besides, the elder had taught him some new dance steps.

He had also tried to score points by using a female form. The men were easier prey, but again, those from Nerima were tougher to fool. When Akane was occupied, he tried to fool Ranma (hoping to cause Ranma to flee), but Ranma immediately grabbed his hand and pulled him onto the dance floor and proceeded to give Tomo a very physical lesson in Anything Goes Dancing. Tomo was grateful full-blooded Kitsunes don't bruise easily but it still hurt. When Akane noticed what was going on, she pretended to be angry and threw water on Ranma who immediately changed shape. Ranma's female form's dress was similar to Akane's, but Ranma's attributes were a little more noticeable. Ranma promptly switched to using outrageous flirting behaviors, pulling the disguised Kitsune close and batting wide eyes at Tomo. Despite Tomo's bluster (and his knowledge), the little Kitsune was fairly inexperienced, so Tomo's brain started to short out, especially since he was still disguised as a female. Soon, it became bad enough that he lost control of the Glamour. Fortunately, the Tendo dojo folks had been blocking the view of everyone else as a real live Kitsune appeared. A smiling Lord Jakaro quickly tapped Tomo on the shoulder and the young Kitsune's human illusion returned. A red-headed Ranma grinned devilishly at the little Kitsune as she said: "That was for the Pepper Duel." She tapped Tomo's nose.

The illusion didn't hide Tomo's red cheeks. "Ah, man…." Tomo sighed.

"What goes around, comes around," Jakaro warned him. "When you start something, someone else may finish it - and sooner than you think." The Elder's thoughts now sounded in his head: "Be a good sport and change Ranma back. Then go make a sweep while you get your illusions straightened out."

"Yes, sir," Tomo answered silently. Tomo gestured and just enough hot water splashed on Ranma for the young man's male form to return, which earned Tomo a nod from Ranma. Tomo then excused himself with a short explanation regarding fixing his illusions and left.

"Well, I scored a few points, despite getting busted," he sighed to himself. "And Lord Jakaro's still pleased with me." He brightened at that thought. "So I guess I'm still ahead." He recalled the ladies that had danced with him; even those who figured out who he was. "That was better than points," he thought. "The only cute one I missed was Akari - and I haven't been banished. Once I do the sweep of the House, I can go back. Ranma won't bust my chops - once he gets even, he forgets about it immediately. I bet Akane and Nabiki will dance with me again if I ask in my male human form. So will Hinako."

As he thought about it further, his exuberance began to return. He quickly found a small nook to dodge into and break Jakaro's illusion, switching to his own. "Now to check the House," he thought. The Banquet Hall was actually a Spirit House owned by an Ogre family. Normally, only spirits stayed and dined here. Any mortal who consumed spirit food would become trapped in the Spirit World. However, Lord Jakaro had rented most of the House and moved it to a vacant lot on this World. As long as the House rested in this World, humans (or Others) were safe from getting caught.

He ran up a hidden set of long stairs and walked out onto the third floor, but this was not the top floor of the building. From the outside, the building appeared to have three floors. From the inside, the building had fifteen floors. The two bottom floors were for the wedding party. This floor (the third) was a buffer zone set up as a maze to prevent humans from accessing the dining halls on the 4th, 5th, and 6th floors, and then there were two floors of hotel rooms above that. Those five floors were currently used for the House's usual customers and had minimal connection to this World. The other seven floors above those were for the Trap - something to keep trespassers busy for several hours. Anyone entering through the apparent top floor from the Outside, would truly end up on the top floor of the building - the fifteen floor. Then they would have to work their way down to the wedding party. "Past all the pitfalls - and each other," Tomo thought gleefully. "Which isn't happening until Lord Jakaro is ready for them." With that, he ran off to check on the intruders…

* * *

Daran checked on the DJ station once more. It had taken a lot of work, but he had convinced Tofu and Kasumi to let him indulge in his second favorite hobby - music. The leader of the traditional band had been the MC through dinner and the various toasts, but when it came time for the cutting of the cake and the non-formal dances (where Daran was not involved), the wedding couple had agreed to let Daran select the music and finish the announcing. The sole condition was that Daran use automation as much as possible so he could be free to enjoy himself too. "The thing is, this *is* how I enjoy myself," he thought. "And I want to do this for them."

He queued up another five songs and some pre-recorded introductions, and then caught Kasumi raising her eyebrows at him and tapping her foot. He held up his hands in mock surrender and bowed to her. At her exasperated look, he grinned and quickly left the station. "Time for a drink," he thought. Daran ran outside the ballroom to the waiting bar in the lobby.

Once he ordered and received his rum and coke, a voice chimed out behind him: "Ah… Doctor Hawke! I was hoping to run into you again."

Daran was moderately successful at suppressing his startle reflex. He turned smoothly and bowed to the elegant woman while saying: "Lady Hoshi! I did not expect to see you here!"

The Kunoichi Mistress of the House of the Falling Star returned the bow politely with a twinkle in her eye. "I petitioned Lord Jakaro to ask the Bride and Groom to allow me to stop by after dinner. They graciously replied that I could come provided I would share dessert. I was assured there would be enough."

"It is a very large cake," Daran agreed.

"So, I was told, Doctor."

"I seemed to recall introducing myself as a mercenary Major," Daran prompted with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, you managed to skip the more interesting parts, my friend," she purred. "I knew you were an adventurer, but I didn't learn about your scholarly pursuits until after you left us." She turned to order a glass of wine from the bar. Daran waited patiently until she received her wine and continued: "I was amazed one would show an interest in the Jazz Greats when one was so young."

"Music was something I never outgrew," he said with aplomb. "That's not what I hold a doctorate in though."

"No," she agreed. "You picked something ephemeral to pursue."

"The Past is where we come from," he stated.

"Not as interesting as the present - or the future as far as I am concerned," she responded. "Nor is it as timeless as Music - especially Jazz."

"Ah, a light dawns," he chuckled.

The Kunoichi Mistress smiled. "Not many in my circles share my interests," she agreed. "And Jazz is not the only music I appreciate. Perhaps you and I could compare notes?" she added while taking his arm. "After I pay my respects to the lovely couple? It would keep me out of trouble after all - and guarantee a little peace. At least until after the Wedding Couple have left." The purr was back in her voice again.

"Now that's an offer I won't refuse…" he said as he escorted her into the ballroom.

* * *

Lady Ume sneaked down the ventilation duct. Every now and then, the Kunoichi would check a vent and make sure she was still going downwards - the damn building had its own gravity. Still, it didn't dampen her mood. "I'm hunting assassins in a Spirit House - *this* is an adventure!" she thought. Twice she had seen one of the assassins in the maze of hotel rooms and suites on the upper floors. Unfortunately, the shifting stairs on the thirteenth floor had stymied her pursuit once, and the other assassin she had seen had fallen through a trap door while dodging the knife-throwing parrot. If Ume got time later, she was going back to kidnap that parrot. "It had definite talent," she reflected.

She inched down to the next vent and peaked through. She saw several small reptilian humanoid forms about the size of children sitting about a low table while enjoying a dish of cucumbers, seaweed, and, apparently, blood. "Kappas," Ume thought while suppressing a little amazement. "Not what I'm after."

"You're one floor too low," a familiar voice told her quietly.

Ume looked back up the shaft to see a Kitsune hanging upside-down above her. The creature held himself stationary by bracing his hind paws against the sides of the shaft. Somehow, his priestly clothes lay perfectly flat against his body. "Yul!" she whispered to the creature she had once shared a hot tub with. "I was hoping I'd see you again."

"Hello Ume," Yul replied. "I'll admit I'm not unhappy to see you, but could you please leave the Kappas alone? They paid good money to have a meal in peace."

She inched back up to her friend. "I don't want to bother them. They're not who I'm hunting. Neither are any of the Wedding Party."

"I'm suppose to keep everyone off this set of floors. How about we go back to the ninth floor, or forward to the third?"

She thought about her mission. "How about the third floor? This way I can cut off the assassins if they make it that far. Besides, I don't want to be near that vending machine on the ninth floor. The Martial Artists there might think I was behind it."

Suddenly she felt the walls shift and she was in free fall. As quickly as it had started, the fall stopped as she dropped into Yul's arms. He shifted to his human form and set her down. She noticed he kept one of his fox tails; probably to amuse her. "I wouldn't worry about it," he told her. You weren't the one who tried to buy Pocky. Normally that machine is on the 8th floor, but that floor has paying customers on it."

"So paying customers are on floors 4 through 8, and the Wedding is on floors 1 and 2," she checked.

He nodded. "I don't suppose you'd like to call it quits and come downstairs?" he asked. "The cake is very good," he offered.

"Sorry," she answered with a little regret. "As much as I would enjoy the company, I'm working tonight."

He made a small dismissive gesture. "It was worth a shot." He paused for a moment and added: "Since you feel that way, I might as well help you and help myself. C'mon." He lead her into what can only be a called a maze of glass walls.

"What's with the orange markers in the carpet?" she asked him.

"They lead to the bathrooms…and stair upwards," he answered. "Follow the green markers to the downward stairs. The upward stairs connect directly to the ninth floor right now. The middle floors don't open into our World through normal means - except for the vents that I need to fix. When I'm done, mortals going downward into the eighth floor will get dumped back on the fifteenth again. The only way to this floor will be the hidden stairs - and they have to find them first."

"Clever," she noted. "Why don't you just isolate the top floors altogether?"

"Aspects of geometry," he replied. "There has to be a mortal Path from the top of the building to the bottom, otherwise a Spirit Trap may form; or in this case, a Mortal trap - anyone eating food here would be caught."

"Important safety tip," she responded understatedly.

"Sort of defeats the point of holding the Wedding here," he agreed.

"So, you're going to put me at the bottom of the staircase junction where I can do guard duty for you."

"Something like that," he agreed. "In return, you'll be in a perfect place if the assassins escape the top floors."

Ume reflected on that. Admittedly, this was what she was hoping for. Still… "So what's in it for me?" she pressed.

"I can get you a piece of wedding cake," he offered.

She rolled her eyes. "And…"

Yul shrugged. "And what? What else do you want?"

"A friendly rematch," she stated firmly. "You won the last match - I want the next one on a dance floor."

"You want a date?" he asked surprised.

"Something like that - in the mortal realm and you pay," she said firmly. "Last one standing wins. Oh, *and* I want a piece of the wedding cake," she added.

"Dutch," he countered. "This way you can't drive me bankrupt into submission."

"Immortals worry about money?" she asked with a raised eyebrow.

"Damn straight. I'm not going into hock over a contest. Deal?" Yul challenged.

"Deal," Ume responded.

A little later, Yul headed up the stairs to the ninth floor - he still had to deal with the vents before he could go back to the party. He grinned to himself though. Finding Ume had worked out very well for him - now he had an alarm in place if any other mortal gained the third floor. "Of course, she didn't *plan* on notifying me when anyone else made it that far," he thought. "But now my own little enchantment is in place courtesy of that cake she's eating: As soon as she hits warp speed for any reason, I'll know."

* * *

The Dojo Destroyer walked out of the suite on the eleventh floor. His normally brown gi was currently covered in multicolored paint ball splatter. In the room behind him, a merc and a ninja were out cold, covered in paint, but otherwise mostly whole. There were the remains of some sort of large remote controlled robot in the middle of the room too. "That was interesting," he pondered slowly. "I've never seen a Dalek shoot paint balls before. Obviously, someone around here is a 'Doctor Who' fan. Nice to know I'd fare well in a Time War."

He bashed in the door of a neighboring suite and heard a soft poof. He carefully peeked through the door and saw a remote control in front of a one-way mirror. "My antagonist was here," he thought. "And he was Gifted. I'll have to watch out for that."

Suddenly he heard a series of "popping" noises coming from one of the floors above him and the sound of doors slamming everywhere around him. The door he bashed in magically "healed" and locked itself. The room with the Dalek was also shut tight. "There go the mayonnaise jars again," he sighed. He heard the sound of a river above him. He reached up and ripped down the ceiling tile above him looking for a support strong enough to hold him. Finding one, he grabbed it and pulled himself up, just as a river of cheap beer poured out of one of the stairways toward him. "How do they keep refilling that vat so quickly?" he wondered silently.

He watched as a kunoichi on an ironing board surfed low under him. She blew him a kiss as she turned a hallway corner. "Smart aleck," he groused.

* * *

The assassin checked around the corner carefully. He saw two mercenaries guarding an intersection ahead with crossbows armed. Quickly, he drew his head back and cursed silently. "What the hell is this place?" he wondered. "Floors are ten times bigger than they should be, I've descended twenty floors in a three story building, and all I can see out of any window is thick mist. It's New Year's Day for crying out loud! Winter! Not late Spring!" He started to retreat back the way he came. "To top it off, my guns will not work. I can't even light a match."

Up ahead, he heard voices arguing. "And I'm being hunted by four different teams," he thought exasperatedly. He quickly jimmied a locked door and snuck into the room beyond. "It's a hotel room? I'm in a hotel?" He scanned the room as he closed and locked the door. The room was extremely large for an accommodation in Japan, with two king-sized beds and a humongous bathroom. "They bathe elephants in here?" he wondered crossly. "What the hell?"

He quickly walked to the bedside scanning for literature on the room, but all he found was the TV remote. He pressed the power button and hit the mute button immediately. A blue screen displayed gold text: "Welcome to Kitsune's Knotty Knoll!"

"Oh god…" the assassin mumbled.

The words scrolled up and a menu appeared. It read: "Events today: (1) Ono wedding. (2) Rivals Unlimited. (3) Hideous Hideaway. (4) Assassin's Hide."

He clicked on the (1) button on the remote and saw a view of a wedding party in full swing, complete with a half-eaten cake. The camera seemed to scan everyone there and he saw his female target wearing a backless dress dancing with a group. He groaned as he saw the male target was also with the group. "Great, they're really somewhere in this building. I can't hunt for them anywhere else."

He clicked the (2) key and the camera view changed to flick through different floors of the hotel, much like a security monitor. He noticed ninjas and other warriors in different hallways, all looking for something. He also saw his two fellow assassins creeping slowly through the maze of floors.

With a sigh, the assassin click button (3). His eyes widened with terror as he looked at the various monsters dining on items best left unmentioned. "What the hell are they!?" escaped from his mouth (he was not up on Japanese legends). "Where the %$!#! am I?" He stood locked in horror for a few moments and then shook himself. He clicked button (4).

What he saw made him sit down hard on the bed. He saw himself on the TV, sitting on a bed in a room. He buried his face in his hands. The image on the TV did the same. "They know where I am," he thought helplessly. "They can take me at any time - whoever the hell 'they' are. I'm lost" Suddenly, something seemed to expand outward from his stomach. "No! I haven't given up yet!" he screamed out loud, trying to take back the thought. "NO!" The pressure grew nonetheless, filling his belly and causing him tremendous pain. It started to push upward, stopping his breathing and pressing right against his heart. "NO! HAVE MERCY! PLEASE!" he cried silently. He rolled onto the floor and tried to vomit unsuccessfully.

Just as suddenly as the pain began, it stopped and the pressure eased slowly. He lay there for a few moments. The lighting in the room changed, causing him to glance up at the TV above him. The screen had changed to black with white lettering. "Mercy?" the screen asked. "When have you ever given mercy?"

The assassin stared at the screen disbelieving for a few minutes. He could still feel the bloating in his stomach, but at least it had retreated and was only uncomfortable, not mortally painful. "I have," the assassin insisted heavily. "I've never drawn out a death - even though the contract required torture. It's always been quick. And I spared that family in Los Angeles - I moved them to Quebec and made them promise to stay silent - they had twin newborn kids. If you're going to kill me, do it quick like I've done."

"We're not the ones killing you," the screen typed. "Henna is. She wants to collect your soul - and punish you for failing."

"So, kill me instead," he pleaded. "I'd rather face Judgment than let her get my soul. Don't let her win."

The cursor began blinking as if the screen was thinking. Finally, it typed: "Maybe we can cut a deal…"

* * *

Lady Hoshi took a seat near the music booth and Daran tapped the mic to get everyone's attention. "All right everyone!" he called out. "There's a Western tradition regarding the tossing of the Bride's bouquet. According to the tradition, the Bride tosses her bouquet into the air toward a crowd of women. Whoever catches the bouquet will be the next to marry. So, let's have all the single women gather in the center of the room."

Ranma and Akane looked at each other. "Time to get a drink from the bar," Ranma stated.

Akane nodded. "Let's go."

"Whoa, whoa!" Daran called out to them as he saw them head to the door. "Where are you two going?"

"We've been at the center of enough cockamamie marriage schemes!" Akane shouted back. "We're skipping this one!" The audience began roaring with laughter.

"It's not really taken that seriously these days!" Daran protested.

A waiter accidentally collided with Ranma and his/her female form appeared in her dress. Ranma rolled her eyes at the shape change as she was now a single woman. "Marines! We are leaving!" she called out.

Nabiki chimed out "I'm gone!" as she got up to join her sister(s). Several other women included Ukyo also got up.

"Oh come on!" Daran pleaded. "It's just a harmless tradition!"

"No such thing in Nerima!" Ukyo shouted back.

Several mercenaries blocked the door to the bar. Ranma's eyes gleamed at the challenge, but before she got there (having to maneuver around several tables), a ringing sound like several bells arose from the bridal bouquet sitting on the head table.

"Oh my," Kasumi gasped. The bride then dove at the bouquet only for it to rise into the air and fly straight at the single women trying to leave the room.

"Oh hell! Everyone down!" Ranma yelled. She raised a glowing hand and shot a small Chi ball at the menacing flowers. The energy struck the bouquet squarely and knocked it across the hall. Amazingly, there was no damage to the flowers.

"Crap," Mausu muttered. "There's no way that shouldn't have taken damage…"

There was a disturbance at the Head table as Kasumi somehow fell onto the floor. Tofu ran to his wife as she cried out: "Oh My!" The wedding garter rose into the air.

Tofu quickly checked Kasumi and then leaped at the garter. "No one's getting enchanted today!" he yelled as he snatched it out of the air. Meanwhile, the bouquet rose into the air again.

"Anyone who's married, grab it!" Hideo shouted as he ran toward the bouquet.

Meanwhile, Tofu was yanked this way and that as he struggled to hold onto the garter. "Single people - Out!" he called. There was a small stampede as the applicable obeyed - except the Martial Artists.

Konatsu threw two plates at the dodging bouquet and managed to knock it down. Shizuka grabbed it, but it managed to escape her after a few moments. The flowers made a beeline for Akane, who grabbed a chair and "swung for the bleachers". The bouquet arced through the air as Ranma and Ryoga hit it again and again with Chi blasts. None of the blast did any damage. Now there was a literal barrage of objects striking the hovering bouquet as both the single and married Martial Artists threw whatever they had handy at it.

"Hold up! I know how to stop it!" Akari called out as she ran forward. With a jump, she snatched it out of the air. "Ryoga! Get the garter!"

Her husband-to-be ran to Tofu who managed to toss it to the Lost Boy. The unmarried couple now had both items, yet the items were still struggling to free themselves. Olaf picked up Ryoga and ran toward where Akari was wrestling with the flowers. "Here!" Olaf shouted as he set Ryoga down.

With a tremendous effort, Ryoga and Akari managed to join hands while holding onto the enchanted objects. Together they shouted: "February 14, 2004!" Unseen, a giant bell sounded filling the hall with its solitary note. The garter and bouquet fell to the ground.

Lord Jakaro ran forward and quickly placed his hands on the couple's foreheads. He looked extremely annoyed, but his demeanor softened as he touched the couple. "That could have been bad, very bad. There was a geas attached to the items. The recipients would have had no choice but to wed, probably followed by a quick divorce. It has no power over you two though - you're already in love and engaged. That was wise, Lady Akari - very wise."

"Something that can't be helped," she smirked.

The disguised Kitsune Lord chuckled and turned around. "My friends…that ends this bit of excitement. I suggest we have all have a drink and enjoy the music while I arrange for some special paper." His eyes glittered as he continued: "It seems an Oni visited us and cast his little spell. While I'm sure it's long gone, there's no way any self-respecting priest would let you go home unprotected. So, I'm going to teach everyone how to make an Origami spirit-trap.

* * *

Next up: Departures


	11. Departures

Chapter 11: Departures

"May I have everyone's attention," Daran requested. He had to repeat the phrase twice before it actually worked. Once it had, he continued: "Our Bride and Groom have a 9PM flight to Hawaii to catch, so it is time to bid them 'Adieu'." Tofu and Kasumi looked surprised. "Could we ask the Blessed couple to come to the center of the dance floor?" With much cheering and shoo'ing motions gestured at them, Tofu and Kasumi came forward. Waiters appeared with trays of champagne and quickly passed out glasses to everyone. "One last Toast to see them on their way," Daran announced. "I'm going to borrow this one from my Irish friends:

May the road rise up to meet you.

May the wind be always at your back.

May the sun shine warm upon your face;

the rains fall soft upon your fields

and until we meet again,

may the Kami hold you well in their thoughts.

To the Wedding Couple!" he finished.

"To the Wedding Couple," everyone cheered as they began to throw confetti at the couple. A veritable blizzard of little colored circles of paper fell from the ceiling on Tofu and Kasumi.

Tofu tried to say something, but paper flew into his mouth as he tried to speak and he had to spit it out. The same thing happened to Kasumi. The groom tried again, but the paper fell faster. He glanced down at his feet and realized that he was standing in a rapidly growing pile. He pulled Kasumi to the side, but the blizzard followed them and a new pile started accumulating quickly. The doctor glanced at his Master and Tofu's eyes widened as he realized Lord Jakaro was holding an ancient staff in one hand. Jakaro held his disciple's eye and tapped the staff on the floor causing more confetti to fall. Kasumi threw a confused look at her husband. Tofu ducked his head to keep his mouth clear. "We have to go - now!" he said. "The Master is putting his foot down."

"But we need to say our 'Goodbye's!" Kasumi protested.

"He's not going to let them happen anywhere but the limo! Those that need them will be there! Let's go!" he told her. He pulled her into a run as the confetti followed them. Their friends cheered, not noting anything amiss. The couple paused at the doorway, counting on the door overhang to give them a little respite. "Thank you all for coming. We really appreciate it!" Tofu called out.

"May the Kami Bless you all," Kasumi echoed. As soon as she said that, confetti began pouring from under the overhang.

"All right! All right!" Tofu cried. "We're going! We won't miss the plane! Farewell!" They turned and ran out. Ranma, Akane, and Nabiki ran after them. The confetti stopped before the trio passed under the overhang.

* * *

Jakaro was waiting in the bride's dressing room. He had a set of traveling clothes all set out for the couple. The mercenaries Banner and Wales were with him - so was the married couple's luggage. Jakaro pointed at the clothes and said sternly: "The bathroom awaits - Change. Your brother and sisters will see to your outfits. Michael and David…" Lord Jakaro indicated the two mercenaries. "Will see that you board the plane." He gave Tofu a short whack on the head with his staff. Jakaro's disciple winced a little. "You're on bread and water for the next three days. Be happy it's not a month for trying to mislead me like that, my son."

"You're lucky your heart was in the right place," Shiran drawled behind Ranma and the girls. "But you're being foolish. There's going to be enough firepower in Nerima for a little bit. And the people of Nerima are not exactly defenseless. Things will hold."

Kasumi opened her mouth to say something, but Jakaro tapped his staff again. Kasumi found herself dressed in her travel clothes between one instant and the next. "My Daughter, like the rest of your family, I find it hard to scold you. However, that bread and water curse is not exactly a scolding…" Jakaro warned her. Her mouth clicked shut.

"Definitely a Nine-Tailed," Nabiki murmured. Ranma and Akane elbowed her in the ribs, but Jakaro only gave a small smile.

Tofu sighed: "All right. No more tricks. I was hoping you'd be too distracted to check."

"That's why I hired Othan," Lord Jakaro smirked. "Now - Change!"

Tofu made a gesture and his tuxedo swapped places with his traveling clothes. "Better…" Jakaro noted.

* * *

The Onos, Tendos, and several friends saw the couple off. As they pulled away, Kasumi asked: "Bread and water curse?"

Tofu sighed and answered: "Anything I eat for the next few days will taste like bread. Anything I drink will taste like water. Basically, I just got my wrist slapped."

"Oh my…I'm sorry, Honey," she said contritely.

"Oh, don't worry about it, Love," he said with a small grin. "I knew the risks when I told him the wrong flight times - and I got off lighter that I planned even though I counted on him giving me some slack because of the wedding. I was planning on a couple of weeks."

"Weeks?"

"He once put Shiran on bread and water for a year," Tofu replied with a shrug. "Of course, Shiran was only a newly minted Journeyman then and had been messing about with some of the Master's High Magic," he added with a smirk.

"High Magic?"

"Picture something like Walt Disney's "Sorcerer's Apprentice", but with molasses instead of water - or so I was told - this was before Mom was born," he laughed.

"Oh my," she laughed with him.

Wales laughed too from the front seat. Then he added: "You're an idiot, Ono, if you thought you'd get away with it. Even I could have told you you'd get caught."

"Perhaps…" Tofu murmured. "By the way, we need to swing by the clinic so I can pick up the tickets?"

Wales held up two sets of tickets, passports, and other travel documents. "Nice try," he grinned. "By the way, I also have your travel money. Face it - you're going on your honeymoon. Horrors of horrors." Kasumi giggled at that. "While your dedication is noble, Nerima will survive without both of you for a few weeks."

"We've arranged for VIP treatment and to be with you up until the airplane door closes," Banner added from the driver's seat. "And there are others who will be watching - all with direct dials to Jakaro's phone. One missed cue and he's getting a call. You're getting on that plane."

"All right, all right… We surrender. We're going to Hawaii," Tofu said exasperatedly.

"Merc's Bargain?" Banner asked.

"Merc's Bargain," Tofu agreed as Kasumi nodded her head. As Tofu sat back, he grumbled: "Besides, he probably has agents watching us in Hawaii."

Banner grinned into the rear-view mirror.

* * *

Akane waved with the rest of the wedding party and other family members as the limousine pulled away. "And done," she said firmly to Ranma.

"Thanks be," he answered blowing out a breath. Akane linked her arm with Ranma. He looked at her and said: "I suppose we need to go back inside and try and sober your Dad up."

Nabiki snorted: "Good luck with that, but we need to go back and see the guests off anyway. I need to collect the gift envelopes too." Now Mousse gave a snort. "Yes?" Nabiki asked him with a raised eyebrow.

"Nothing that needs to be said - it's already understood," he answered. She just smirked in reply.

"Well, I think Akari and I will head off," Ryoga stated. He looked at Lord Jakaro. "You're sure we don't have to worry about the assassins?"

"Positive," Jakaro stated. "All the teams have been accounted for and the 'chatter' has gone quiet. Not to say you shouldn't be careful, but steps are being taken to limit this type of attack." He raised an eyebrow at Akari. "By the way, tell that 'mountain' of yours to leave the foxes alone on the farm for the next several months. Any fox there is on business and shouldn't be run off - especially me!"

Akari didn't quite suppress a smile. "Oh dear…Yes, sir," she replied. She obviously understood Jakaro was teasing her. "Just tell the ones on business not to raid the farm. If they want fed, they should knock on the front door."

"Fair enough," he chuckled with a quick smile.

"You're welcome to stay at the dojo," Nodoka told the farm couple. "You don't have to go to a hotel."

"Thanks Ms. Saotome, but we want to spend some time alone before we have to get back to the farm," Ryoga answered.

"Same with us," Maomolin replied before she could ask. He stood holding Chiyoko's hand. "Besides, I promised Tofu I'd keep a watch on the clinic. That starts now."

"You'll stop by this weekend?" Nodoka pushed.

"Of course," Chiyoko promised. "It's just down the street after all. We'll make sure to do that before I have to head back home."

"Well, let's wrap up this party then," Olaf said to get folks moving. "It's too cold out her for mere mortals after all."

"Which would be who?" Shizuka wondered aloud (and impishly) as they all started to move.

* * *

Lord Jakaro parted from the rest as soon as they walked in. He walked alone toward the bar for a glass of wine. He needed to shoo the innocents - or at least the unpowered mortals - home, but first he wanted to have a private toast to his Disciple and his Disciple's Beloved. The Kitsune behind the bar immediately handed him a glass of the correct vintage. Jakaro took the glass with a nod and then went into a small side room with a handful of chairs - all empty. He raised the glass and murmured: "My Blessings on you my Children: may you have a long a fruitful life. And may I continue to be a part of your life." He then drained the glass and stood there with his eyes closed for a few moments.

Just after he opened his eyes, he heard someone clear their throat. "Excuse me, Lord Jakaro?" a voice said. The Kitsune Lord turned to see Chief Inspector Ojima standing in the entryway to the room with his own glass of wine. "May we talk?"

"Of course, Chief Inspector," Jakaro answered smoothly. "What can I do for you?"

Ojima seemed to wince just a little at the title, but entered the little alcove and continued: "Look, forgive me - I know they invaded, but you can't keep them here indefinitely. Release them to me and I'll arrest them for trespassing."

"Oh dear," Jakaro said quietly to the inspector. "I knew your Sight was powerful, but I didn't expect it to be able to see throughout the wedding hall."

"You mean the Spirit House," Ojima corrected just as quietly.

"You can see all the Guests?" Jakaro asked.

"Including the tenants and the landlords," Ojima confirmed.

Jakaro sat down and motioned for the inspector to do the same. Ojima obliged him and said: "Please."

The Kitsune Lord smiled briefly. "You must really be worried - you really can see too much," he noted. "But I promise you - no one died for those meals." Then he leaned forward and stated seriously: "Rest assured, Inspector: every remaining wedding guest, every ninja - male and female, every mercenary, and every ward of Japan will be released shortly. I will not go Home until they are free."

"Thank you," Ojima responded gravely.

Jakaro made a face. "You may want to hold off on that 'thanks'," he drawled. "There will be consequences. They are all spoiling for a fight - and they are going to find each other." He made a gesture at their surroundings. "All this is due to a spell powered by Nerima's focus on Tofu and Kasumi. Since the couple has left, the power is ending and so is the spell. As the spell breaks down, the barriers holding everyone apart will break down too. The ballroom will become quite busy."

"Well, I knew the peace was too good to last," Ojima replied. "I'll deal with it."

Jakaro looked at him with a slightly amused expression. "You may want to let them fight it out - there's a lot of them to stop and there's not enough room in your jails to arrest them all. Technically, none of this is in Nerima anyway - no offense, but you're outside your jurisdiction."

"I work in Nerima; I should have two levels of bosses above me. Instead, I'm it. I'm always outside my jurisdiction," Ojima said while making his own face. He stood up to pace and took a sip of wine. "But it's bad precedent to let them have their way unopposed," he finished.

"I have a feeling you're not talking about the trapped miscreants," Jakaro observed. "Still, you can't fix the world by yourself, Chief Inspector."

Ojima gave Jakaro a very direct look. "You're not one to talk."

"Ah, but I'm not alone. I have my Disciples, my Children, my Friends, and my Mercenaries. I even have you," Jakaro said standing up. "And I have enough trust in you to say that you may do as you please without danger of offending me," he stated. "Please be forewarned that any constraints I have on the invaders applies to you too - no gun powder, no explosions, and no blades." He nodded to Ojima who bowed back. Then he left the room.

* * *

Ojima sat down again with his glass. "Amazing," he thought. "He's imperial without being a jackass; still imperial though." The inspector took another sip, noting that Jakaro had somehow re-filled it. "But he's right. There are too many to arrest. There are nearly two hundred of them. I can get a few squads together, but there's no way I can match their numbers." He thought about that for a few minutes until his phone rang. He glanced at the caller ID and answered quickly: "Sergeant Imia? Is everything all right?"

"Yes, Sir," Imia answered snappily. "I've done what Judge Sanu asked. I have seventy men ready to go. He said to call you when I had them assembled."

"Seventy?" Ojima asked. "Where did you find seventy men?"

"I asked for volunteers across the Ward, Sir," Imia replied. "The men were anxious to help. Did I do something wrong?"

It then dawned on Ojima that he wasn't alone either. "No. no," Ojima responded quickly. "That's perfect. I expected half that number. Give me a second to re-think my plans," he lied. A glimmer of an idea began to form. "I have to get their attention though. They have to see us," he thought to himself. To Imia he said: "I want you to bring the men to the wedding hall. But before that, get everyone into riot gear. Bring at least five prisoner wagons as big as you can find."

"Who are we arresting?" Imia asked.

Ojima told him.

"Are you serious?" Imia burst out.

"Only sort of. Just trust me, OK?" Ojima replied.

"Yes sir. Anything else?" Imia prompted.

An idea struck Ojima and a crazy smile crossed his face. "Yes, send two men to my apartment and grab the flag hanging behind the couch. Have them attach it to a flagpole properly, and bring it to me."

The sergeant was silent for a moment on the other end. Then he responded: "Oh, there's no way I'm missing this one…"

* * *

Sasuke appeared at his Master's elbow. "Sir," the little ninja hissed. "It's time to go."

Toshio Kuno looked puzzled at his servant. "What's wrong?"

"There's a riot heading towards us. The Kitsunes are no longer keeping feuding parties apart on the several floors above us."

"Several floors? What are you talking about, man?" Kuno asked urgently.

"This place is not what it seems - it's much bigger than it looks on the outside. There are four armies - including our people - hunting three assassins hunting Akari and Ranma," Sasuke insisted. "The Kitsunes kept everyone separated, but the wedding's over - their power's fading I think."

"Where's Akari and Ranma now?" Kuno asked.

"Akari's gone. She and Ryoga said their 'Farewells' and left - cloaked. We can't follow them and neither can the assassins."

"What about Ranma?"

"He's with Akane and Nabiki bidding the guests 'Goodbye'," Sasuke answered. "Tofu's mercenaries are slowly drifting over to them."

"I can't just vanish. Things are going too well with Nodoka!" Kuno insisted.

"Well, take her with you! Sir, it's going to be hard enough to keep the assassins from Ranma! Don't make us guard you too! Take her out for coffee or something!" Sasuke pleaded.

Kuno's brain quickly shifted along that track. The evening had gone very well. It would be natural to ask her out for coffee. The thing was, Nodoka would want to insist on helping close out the wedding. She viewed herself as a mother-figure to the Tendo girls whether she admitted it or not. "Come on think! How do I convince her to set that aside?" he asked himself. He glanced about the ballroom until his eyes fell on a small figure also saying 'Goodbye' to guests. "Perfect," he purred aloud.

"Sorry, sir?" Sasuke prompted.

"I just found an ally," Kuno told his servant. "Vanish and follow." Sasuke nodded and stepped into the shadows. Toshio carefully composed himself and watched for Nodoka. She reappeared shortly thereafter. As luck would have it, she sought out Kuno's ally. He got up quickly and moved into action.

The two women were deep in conversation when the shorter one noticed Kuno approaching. Her eyes sparkled - as they had whenever she looked at Kuno and Nodoka dancing. "Why Mister Kuno," Kin Ono said aloud. "Surely you're not leaving us so soon! The night is still young!"

"Yes, Mrs. Ono, it is," Kuno replied smoothly. He turned to look at Nodoka. "Actually, I was hoping if I could convince Ms. Saotome to join me for coffee. Maybe you could join us, Mrs. Ono?"

Before Nodoka could say anything, Tofu's mother quickly said: "No, no. I have much to do here. But there's no reason my Daughter shouldn't go and enjoy herself."

"But I need to stay and help…" Nodoka started.

"No you don't!" Kin insisted, cutting Nodoka off. "The extra food is going to my house to help feed the Ono clan staying there. The wedding hall is responsible for the clean-up. Most of the Nerima residents have left." Kin seem to pause as she looked around. Kuno saw her eyes narrow momentarily, but the look she gave Nodoka was purely innocent. "The rest will not notice. You should go."

"But won't the kids need help with Soun?" Nodoka asked. Kuno worked to keep his expression neutral. Kin answered Nodoka: "Honey? You can't carry Soun. Only one of the kids can. Besides, do you really want to be seen as Soun's nursemaid?"

Nodoka gave a little start at that. Then her eyes firmed as she murmured to herself: "Or worse…" She turned to Kuno and said aloud: "I'd love to go for coffee, Toshio. Let me tell Ranma and get my coat."

"Oh, I'll tell Ranma, Honey," Kin said quickly (almost hurriedly). "You should go." She started to push firmly at Nodoka's back.

Nodoka looked slightly puzzled, but gave in. "All right, let go," she said with a nod to Toshio.

Kuno took her arm and led her away. He looked back and mouthed to Kin "Thank you!" Kin nodded and made a shoo'ing motion in response.

* * *

Kin dropped the "old woman's gait" and walked hurriedly to Lord Jakaro. As he turned at her approach, she demanded in a low voice: "My lord! What the hell is going on?"

"Minor spot of trouble," he told her smoothly. "But you may want to encourage the mortal side of your family to move along."

"How long do we have?"

"In all honesty?"

"Yes!" she hissed.

"I have no idea."

* * *

Next up: The Battle Royale


	12. Battle Royale

Chapter 12: The Battle Royale

"Slow down!" one of the assassins called to the others using a ton of curse words. "This hurts!"

"No crap," his compatriot said. "But if we don't want it to become permanent, we need to hurry. We have to find that hidden stairwell before those idiots find us. This place is starting to literally fade - look at the walls!" The colors around them seem to be thinning towards black and white.

"We're walking into a trap!" the third insisted.

"No, we're already in a trap," the second replied. "Not only that, we're the bait. Move it!"

* * *

Othan closed his flip-phone. He studied the phone for a moment and admitted to himself that Jakaro equipped his teams well.

"Well? What did Lord Jakaro say?" Pauls asked.

"It's begun. With the newlyweds gone, the Power is starting to fade. The Kitsunes are using what power they have left to try and control the process. Call everyone up here. We sweep and secure each floor as soon as the shifting stabilizes. We force everyone into the stairwell down to the third floor," Othan answered.

"How do we know when the shifting stabilizes?" Pauls pressed. As soon as he asked, all the color leeched out of their surroundings. "Never mind."

Othan grinned. "Let's do this."

* * *

Sensei Miyazaki opened the stairwell door and heard voices speaking from somewhere below. He urged his companions to be silent. After a few moments of listening, he nodded to himself and started forward. "Are you sure?" one of his companions, a fellow Martial Artist, asked.

"The ninjas and the mercs have all been speaking Japanese. This is English - and they are talking about locating their targets. If it's not the assassins, they know where the assassins are."

"Good enough," someone behind him said. The sensei nodded and led his five companions into the stairwell.

As they went down the stairs, none of them noticed a large fox watching them from an upper platform.

* * *

Lord Jakaro answered his phone: "Yes, Inspector Ojima?"

"I need an Ace in my pocket. Is there some way you can Shield Ranma so others can't detect him magically? Like Akane?" Ojima asked.

"That could be hazardous to someone's health – like everyone's," the Kitsune Lord stated gravely. "She'll rip the place apart if she thinks someone is hiding him from her. She's young, but the Power within her is enormous."

"I need Ranma alone for five minutes. I can't have her interfering," the Inspector explained.

"O.K…that I can arrange. I can create something general enough where she doesn't think Ranma was attacked. But I warn you, your own Sight will be disabled temporarily too," Jakaro told him.

"I'll live," Ojima said sardonically.

* * *

Noa raced along the hallway pursuing the glimpse she had caught of one of the assassins. She turned a corner and ducked as the man tried to strike her with a nunchuck. She launched a kick that knocked him through a nearby wall and into a void beyond it. She checked her impulse to immediately follow and took out a flashlight instead. She quickly pulled back as three objects whizzed out of the darkness and struck the wall behind her. One of them bounced off the wall and struck her on her back. She looked at the item as it rolled on the floor.

"A baseball? An assassin threw a baseball at me? What the hell?" she thought. She pulled out one of her knives and looked at it. Since it seemed normal, she tossed a flare into the darkness and waited for the ignition flash to pass. Then she popped up and threw the knife with deadly aim. The assassin tried to dodge and almost succeeded - the knife struck his arm. She heard him curse and then saw him run out a door. Noa leaped into the lit room, but a suspicion slowed her. She snatched up her knife and looked at it. The blade had turned to rubber, just like a joke shop knife.

She studied the blade and pondered the implications. "The Kitsunes will not allow death on their property," she mused. "It's possible that they cannot - it may be an enforcement of a Truce in honor of the wedding. So be it. It means he won't be allowed to kill Ranma or anyone else either. So, I'll catch the assassin and drag him out alive." She took out a throw net and ran out the door, no longer worried about knives or bullets.

* * *

Jacobs felt the tether grab his foot and trip him. He went down with a curse as one of Kuno's ninjas leaped over him. "You should have stayed at the compound's gates and waited for us to give you scraps!" the ninja sneered as he turned a corner.

Jacobs growled: "That's it! Now I know why Ojima hates Kuno's men. Once I put those assassins to sleep, I'm gonna bash that smart mouth's teeth in." He got up and tore after the ninja.

* * *

Akihiro Kodo felt he was a young up-and-coming Martial Artist. He had worked hard and risen in the rankings so that even Ranma Ono would treat him seriously on the dojo floor. He had yet to come close to defeating Ranma, but even Ranma had told him once that he had done well. "And no assassin is going to take Ranma Ono from me - not until I beat Ranma and have Ranma demand a rematch from me!" he swore.

Miwa Abe was a young up-and-coming Kunoichi from the House of the Fallen Star. Mistress Hoshi had asked her to come along on this little adventure, promising Miwa that there would be an excellent chance to exercise her skills. So far, the little Kunoichi was disappointed; the very walls seemed to shift and change to keep everyone at a distance.

However, things were changing. The floor layouts were starting to form predictable patterns and some of the stranger aspects - like exploding mayonnaise jars - were no longer evident. The bright colors on the walls were fading into more normal patterns. Once or twice, she even managed to get close to a rival and end up in a quick tussle. A kick to the jaw here, a kidney punch there - it was definitely more interesting.

Now she saw a young man of about twenty wearing a red gi and tracking something in the hallway ahead. "Young fool," she thought, even though she was about the same age. "Any tracks here are obvious fakes." Miwa was going to use a kick to the kidneys and blow past him. However, the young man turned to face her, somehow detecting her, and she was instantly smitten with him. So smitten in fact that she chose not to disable him, but stopped and pulled back her hood instead, revealing a beautiful face and causing the young man to stand there with his mouth hanging open.

She beamed and then bounced along the hallway to pop up in front of him. Despite the fact she was only two-thirds his height, she leaped up, grabbed him around the neck and gave him a hearty kiss that bowled the young man over. She followed him to the floor and continued to kiss him until his eyes glazed over. Miwa broke the kiss, looked him in the eyes, and proclaimed: "Now that was definitely worth it! Bye!" With that, she ran off down the hall.

Akihiro slowly sat up after she was gone, shaking his head. "O.K., I agree. That was definitely worth it…"

He might have sat there stunned a little longer if it wasn't for the mercenary who doped slapped him as the big man ran by. "Idiot!" the merc shouted back at him. "Never let a Skirt wipe your brains like that!"

Akihiro shook his head again and got up. "Jackass," he thought. "Who are you to tell me anything?!" With that, he ran after the merc.

* * *

Down in the ballroom, Ranma surveyed the room, developing an uncomfortable feeling in the pit of his stomach. Most of the room was filled with two groups: Tofu's mercenary friends (at least those not on duty), and friends of the married couple who just happen to be Nerima Martial Artists. Those friends and family not gifted with Strength and Stamina (but most likely gifted with Common Sense) had said their goodbyes and left. There were assorted Kitsunes here and there going through the motions of leaving, but they didn't seem to be in a hurry. Most of the wedding party was hanging very close to the remaining Tendo clan and Ranma, except for Daran who was talking with Lady Hoshi.

Nabiki picked up on Ranma's uneasiness. "Our Honor Guard has surrounded us," she noted quietly. He just nodded.

Akane's eyes were wary. "I wonder if it's because of the assassins that got away."

"Not sure," Ranma said tersely. Before he could say anything else, Lord Jakaro approached them with Tomo in tow, and the three of them straightened up to receive him.

"I must be on my way now," he said in a warm and soft tone. "Unfortunately, with your elder siblings' departure, it is getting harder and harder to maintain the Spell that holds this House here. I must leave to make sure the Spell shuts down in an orderly fashion. I've ordered the bar shut, so the rest of the Guests will quickly get the hint and leave. The spare food has already been sent to Mrs. Ono's. The cleaning crew will take care of the rest. You should really head home."

Akane shook her head and replied: "It would be very impolite to leave before our Guests."

"True," Lord Jakaro acknowledged with a sigh. "Still, I think many of the remaining Guests really have other things on their minds - you may want to get the hell out of here. There are scores they want settled. They don't necessarily involve you. If they do, you can settle them another day - not on this wedding day."

Ranma nodded in acknowledgement, but answered: "We still need to stay until the wedding party has ended."

"I'll stay with them, Master," Tomo said. To their credit, neither Nabiki nor the teenage couple rolled their eyes.

"You may want to stay out of the way," Jakaro said firmly. "You don't really know who's settling scores tonight. You may find yourself on the receiving end of a payback you didn't expect," he added cryptically.

"I can still help them," Tomo half-pleaded.

"On your head be it," Jakaro said as he tapped Tomo's noggin lightly. With that, he said his formal goodbyes and vanished.

* * *

Ume heard running from one of the two staircases and hid behind an opaque glass divider. "Sounds like a pursuit," she thought. She heard a body hit the turn in the staircase hard and then bounce away. The door from the bathroom burst open and a man fitting the description of one of the assassins ran out into a parlor area in front of the maze. Ume pulled out a knife, leaped up on top of the divider, and launched herself at him in one smooth motion. The assassin turned as he saw her and lashed out with his fist, ignoring the knife entirely. His fist caught Ume in the chin even as her knife stuck him in the chest. He staggered back even as she reeled from the punch. Amazingly, he kicked her in the stomach dropping her to the floor.

Just then, Noa burst out the bathroom door. "Weapons don't work here," she shouted as she covered half the distance to the still standing assassin. Behind her, one of the parlor walls exploded as the Dojo Destroyer also failed to take the hidden stair's turn, causing everyone to pause.

The moon-faced giant staggered out into the open area and then re-oriented on the assassin and the two women. "He's mine!" Dojo roared.

"Screw this!" the assassin yelled as he ran off into the maze.

* * *

Ciren stood with Mausu and Olaf keeping half-an-eye on Ranma as he and the two Tendo women waited for the remaining mercenaries and Martial Artists to notice that it was time to go home. Suddenly, Yul suddenly stood up and gave a fox warning call. Every Kitsune in the room vanished, leaving the Humans very confused. Ciren looked up at the ceiling as the noise started: somewhere above them, there was a series of tremendous crashes and shattering sounds. Shortly thereafter, Olaf's phone started ringing. "Yo!" the giant said as he answered his phone. Mausu's and Ciren's phones rang before they could eavesdrop any further.

"Ciren," she answered.

"It's Jacobs," a male voice replied. "We got an issue. Any chance you can get Ranma out of there?"

"Dude, when it comes right down to it, he's Japanese. Courtesy compels him to stay put," she told him. Other phones were starting to ring among the remaining guests.

"Feck. There's a battle royale happening on the third floor. We got ninja, Kunoichi, and every Martial Artist not invited to the wedding going at each other - and us. Somewhere in this mess is at least one assassin," Jacobs said.

Ciren cursed and then noticed the "free" mercenaries and the Martial Artists in the room studying each other. "Oh hell," she mumbled as she finally realized what was going on. "I'll see you a battle royale and raise you a Mexican standoff. Hanson's team and Burger's team haven't left yet. Neither have the Martial Artists Tofu and Kasumi invited to the wedding. Lady Hoshi's in the room too - I'll bet she has others here. Kuno's got men here too."

"We need Ranma to leave," Jacobs hissed. "The assassin's coming for him."

"You don't understand! He can't!" Ciren insisted. "He's Tofu's official brother. He's obligated to stay until the last guest leaves. It's family dishonor if he doesn't."

"What about the Chinese lad?" Jacobs asked. "Isn't he older? Couldn't he do the job?"

"Ranma is an acknowledged Master. Mousse isn't," Ciren explained. "With Tofu and the head of the Ono clan gone, it's Ranma's obligation to close things out. Nabiki is on the hook too as the eldest Tendo daughter - Soun's drunk off his ass."

"Crap - let me call Jakaro!" With that, Jacobs hung up.

Ciren sighed as she closed her phone. Akane came over then. "Ciren," the young woman whispered. "Any way we can get them…" she nodded at the remaining guests. "…to go home?"

Ciren was about to answer when her phone went off again. She looked at it with a puzzled expression - Ojima was calling her. "Don't go anywhere Akane, but I have to take this," Ciren told her. Akane nodded and Ciren answered her phone. "Ojima? Where are you?"

"I need a big favor, Ciren - a really big favor," the inspector replied. "One that may endanger life and limb."

"What's wrong?" she pressed.

"I need you to get Akane away from Ranma," he stated gravely.

"What? Why?" she asked, glad Akane was focused on the unwanted guests.

"We need Ranma out of there. His presence is stopping the House from leaving. We need to end this before real damage is done and there's only one way that he'll allow that," Ojima answered.

"What's that?" she asked.

He told her.

"Are you absolutely mental?!" she hissed.

"You have a better idea? And you better hurry - Jakaro found up what I'm up to and wants to coordinate things," Ojima said.

"But…." Ciren started and then stopped. "I have an idea," she said slowly. After a pause, she added: "Give me five minutes to get in place," she said.

"Move fast," Ojima urged and then said 'goodbye'.

* * *

Akane scanned the ballroom. There was no way to mistake the glares going back and forth. "Each wants the other to leave," she thought. "And there's ninja waiting in the shadows. I can feel the fighting somewhere in this building. This has something to do with this morning. People are waiting for some call to action…"

"Akane," Ciren said, cutting into the young woman's thoughts. "Let's go find Daran and ask him to shutdown the music. We're also going to find the lights and start turning them down. Enough's enough."

"But I need to stay…" Akane started.

"No, Ranma and Nabiki need to stay," Ciren interrupted her again. "You and Mousse have the freedom to move. Let's get him involved too. Go tell Ranma."

Akane wasn't sure about this, but something had to be done. "Maybe it will convince them to wait outside," she thought. She walked over to Ranma and told him Ciren's plan.

"I'm tired and I want to go home," he told her looking a little frustrated. "Give it a shot. If nothing else, the locals will start to get very uncomfortable."

She nodded and joined Ciren who was talking to Mousse. The Chinese man was looking very skeptical. "What have we got to lose?" Ciren asked persuasively.

"The mind-boggles," he answered. "But I'm tired of waiting," he added echoing Ranma. "If nothing else, it may force those two groups to get on with it. Let's go."

* * *

Daran noticed the thumping and banging from upstairs was getting louder, even out by the bar. Lady Hoshi was also well aware, but continued to act as if nothing was odd except for the occasional wince at a particularly loud "Boom". He was about to call her on it when Ciren, Akane, and Mousse came over with Tomo following curiously. The trio suggested he pack up the sound system.

"It's time," he agreed. "Besides, I'd like to protect my equipment - that stuff is good quality." As he started back toward the open doors of the ballroom, a buzzer began ringing from his jacket pocket. Confused, he pulled out the small object; it was a small flat square about six centimeters on each side and about ½ a centimeter thick.

"What's that?" Lady Hoshi asked curiously.

"It's a spell detector," he answered shortly. "It buzzes in response to magic…" he had to stop as the center of the ballroom ceiling gave way in a loud explosion of bright light, spilling combatants onto the ballroom floor. "Oh crap," he thought as the doorway to the ballroom became blocked by debris.

The shockwave hit Akane. Her head rang with the noise of it, blinding her other senses, and causing her to stagger. Vaguely, she was aware that Ciren was also stumbling. Strong hands reached out to steady her and she found her center again. She looked to see a Kunoichi woman holding her. As the female ninja saw Akane straighten up, she released Akane and then winked at her. The Kunoichi then ran off down the hallway since the ballroom door was blocked.

Tomo steadied Ciren who was still holding her head. "Beggar!" the woman exclaimed. "That hurt! I'm all Blocked."

"What's wrong?" Lady Hoshi demanded.

"That explosion was magical," Daran explained looking at the blocked doorway. "Anyone with the Sight just got blinded."

* * *

Ranma watched in disbelief as people broke through from the ceiling. The first wave was at least twenty people tumbling over ten meters to the floor. They barely even noticed as they were fighting even as they fell. The ninja and Kunoichi were self-evident by their fighting attire. Ranma personally knew many of the Martial Artists. There was even a mercenary Ranma knew as part of Othan's team. They all seem to be fighting over one man who was tossed back and forth among them like a trussed heifer. "Got to be an assassin," Ranma thought. "If the others down here, figure it out…"

Too late. The mercenaries and Martial Artists already in the room jumped up to join their comrades. Not only that, more fighters were leaping down from the hole in the ceiling to join the rapidly growing fight. Others were racing in through the doors not blocked by the explosion. As Ranma watched, one unknown man in particular leaped down. He was dressed in black combat fatigues, which was markedly different from Othan's team. At least a dozen people, a mix of the fighters already in play, were following him. The man looked wildly about the crowd as he hit the floor and ran. He spied Ranma and ran straight at him with a knife in his hand.

"Sorry, kid! But you're my ticket out of this mess!" the assassin said as he leapt at Ranma, knife raised.

Ranma easily disarmed him and took the knife away. The blade was sagging as if made of rubber. "What the hell?!" Ranma demanded as he twisted his attacker's arm behind the man's back and clamped an arm around the assassin's neck.

"You're about to find out, kid! That's why I apologized," his captive told him.

"He's mine!" a Kunoichi screamed at Ranma. The pigtailed Martial Artist remembered seeing her before at the House of the Falling Star. She dived at Ranma and he was force to let go of the assassin.

"No, he's mine!" Akihiro Kodo yelled out as he tackled the freed prisoner.

"Kodo! Wait a minute!" Ranma tried to shout, only to be drowned out by the shouts of other pursuers. Meanwhile Ranma had to block the Kunoichi again as she realized who she was fighting. Her eyes burned at the chance to face Ranma Ono. "Damn it!" Ranma swore. He needed to concentrate on the assassin, not get involved in a rivalry. Then Mausu was there. He tapped the Kunoichi behind the ear and knocked her out, allowing Ranma to try to find the assassin again. Unfortunately, the man seemed to be at the bottom of a pile-on.

Olaf caught another rival - a martial artist this time - running at Ranma and tossed him back into the crowd. "Now's not the time to be popular, lad!" Olaf mock-scolded.

"Yeah, I'll work on that," Ranma shot back sarcastically.

Off to the side, he heard a shout: "HAPPO FIVE-YEN SATSU"

About a dozen fighters floated to the ground before an adult Hinako.

"Hinako!" Ranma shouted. "Get Soun outside!" She nodded and easily picked up the drunkard. Ranma turned to Mausu: "Guard her! She's not a fighter!" Mausu rolled his eyes and threw a thumb gesture at the downed men, but went to Hinako's side anyway. Ranma took time to slam another Martial Artist away. Olaf blocked another Kunoichi. Nabiki had placed herself so she had Ranma and Olaf between her and the free-for-all. "Olaf! Just block for Nabiki! I've got to get that assassin." Olaf shook his head in exasperation as Ranma ran at the pile of people. The pig-tailed martial artist tossed people aside trying to find the bottom of the pile. When he succeeded, he found no one there. "What the hell?" he wondered aloud.

"It's Ranma!" another Kunoichi shouted. "Get him and take him back to the House! We can keep him safe there!"

"I don't need to be kept…" Ranma started only to be cut off.

"No! He belongs with us!" the Dojo Destroyer shouted as he dived at Ranma.

"Ah, come on! Hold up!" Ranma shouted as he leaped aside. He tried to invoke the Umisen-ken, but people were bumping into him and breaking it. "Damn it!" he swore as he had to jump over more people. Very quickly, he was moving and dodging at high speed. He had a vague goal of trying to locate the trussed assassin, but there were too many people fighting back and forth. His best guess was there were about two hundred ninjas, mercenaries, Kunoichis, and Martial Artists most of whom he knew, but, even so, it was hard to keep track of who was where.

Suddenly, a shout of "BANZAI!" cut through the room. Ranma turned to see about seventy cops wearing riot gear and carrying plexiglass shields and short wooden batons charging into the ballroom. At their head was Inspector Ojima carrying a "skull and crossbones" flag.

The thought "Oh gods…" flitted through Ranma's mind. The effect on the rest of the ballroom fighters was electric though. Ojima's men had captured everyone's attention, stopping the fighting immediately. The policemen were using their shields to push back the crowd, shoving everyone out of their way. They held their batons at the ready, but the short weapons were unusable as no one tried to get around the shields. The number one unspoken rule of Nerima kicked in: No one attacks a police officer.

Ranma stood stunned as Kunoichi, ninjas, mercenaries, and Martial Artists began to flee the ballroom. He watched as Sergeant Imia pushed his way over to him and seized Ranma by the upper arm. In a huge voice, Imia boomed out: "You're under arrest, Ranma Ono, for disturbing the peace!"

* * *

A/N: We'll wrap this up next week. See you then!


	13. Picking up

Chapter 13: Picking up

Lord Jakaro watched Sergeant Imia pull Ranma off of the House grounds and hand the young lad over to Inspector Ojima. The Kitsune lord felt the Power flows change and his eyes glittered. "Ah ha! I was right! You were the second Power Source – you kept the House here after Tofu and Kasumi left, Shape-Shifter," he thought gleefully. "You and your misguided sense of honor. Impressive, very impressive." Jakaro considered the human as he was dragged toward the prisoner wagon. "You're a Power Point, a living Nexus, and you can tap into the primary Nexus. If I can teach you how to increase your power, you can give Henna a run for her money. You might even be able to beat her, especially if we can trick her to come to Nerima. Even more so with help from Akane and Ryoga…"

* * *

Inspector Ojima pulled Ranma Ono outside toward the police wagons waiting on the street. Normally, he'd never be a match for Ranma, but Ranma was not resisting at all - at least not physically. "This isn't my fault!" Ranma was protesting to the inspector.

"Everything's your fault, Ono! The Kunoichi…the Mercenaries…the Ninjas…you even inspired the locals to take arms! I've had enough! The jail will be full tonight! I'm going to bust them all! Get ready to go on a prison food fast!" He looked at the two policemen guarding the nearest wagon. "Open it! Then get your hides inside! There's lots of arrests to be made." The men hastened to obey.

Ranma tried again: "Inspector! Please listen to me!"

"Not another word out of you tonight!" Ojima responded sharply. "You can plead your case before Judge Sanu tomorrow. Another word and I'll charge you with resisting arrest!" Ranma's mouth snapped shut. Ojima looked at the two officers. "MOVE IT! Get the others!" he yelled.

Both men took off at a run. "Damn, he's pissed," one whispered to the other.

Ojima tossed Ranma into the open van and jumped up. As soon as he was out-of-sight from anyone watching, Ojima's posture softened, confusing Ranma. "Sorry lad," the inspector said. "Not a word, but you're not under arrest." Ranma made a questioning gesture, so Ojima obliged: "If people think I'm willing to arrest you for that fiasco, then their dead meat as far as I'm concerned." Ranma's eyes widened in understanding. "Now," Ojima continued. "Unless you really want to see the inside of a jail cell - for protective custody, mind you - I need you to pull that disappearing act and stay out of sight for the rest of the night. Can Olaf disappear too?"

Ranma shook his head. "But Mausu and Daran can," he whispered. "So can Mousse and Akane."

"If you think I'm setting myself up to have Akane scream at me for the next year, you've been hit too many times in the head," Ojima grinned at him. "I'll grab Mousse next." Ranma smirked back. "Now, VANISH!" Ranma obliged him.

* * *

Akane was looking frantically for Ranma. The explosion was forcing her to detour around blocked passages and there was fighting everywhere. Ninjas, Kunoichis, Martial Artists, and Mercenaries were attacking each other all around her, creating further chaos. While the Ninjas and Mercenaries ignored her, occasionally one of the Kunoichis or Martial Artists would challenge her. Akane quickly brushed them out of her way as a warning. The stubborn ones were rewarded with punches to the jaw – most of them didn't come back for more. The foolish ones were given Chi blasts – they didn't come back. Daran, Ciren, and (surprisingly) Lady Hoshi had her back; there were no attacks from behind.

Akane had almost managed to make it from her side hallway to the main hallway (that ran from the front door to the ballroom) when she heard the shout of "Banzai!" Up ahead, she saw scores of policemen charging down the main hall toward the ballroom. At the head of the column was Inspector Ojima waving a "Jolly Roger" pirate flag. The phrase "Oh hell…" trickled through Akane's mind. Immediately, Akane was caught in the flow of everyone running away from the police. She didn't dare fight the stream – if she incapacitated anyone, they would be trampled to death. She found herself back by the now empty bar and managed to dive behind it. Ciren appeared beside her. "We need to Cloak!" Ciren whispered urgently. Akane nodded her head and invoked the Umisen-ken.

They stayed hidden until the sound of the crowd faded, as did the sound of the police chasing them. Ciren broke her Cloak first. "All right, I think the worst has passed. Let's sneak around the back and see what's going on in the ballroom," she whispered.

Akane nodded and said in a low voice: "I can't find Ranma."

"He may be Cloaking. Don't panic yet," Ciren advised. "Let's go."

They slowly worked their way around to the back of the building and found an unblocked hallway leading to the ballroom. Halfway down the hallway there was a little alcove. Inside, they found Shiran holding a prone Tomo. Both of them were in their Kitsune forms. "What happened?!" Akane asked worriedly as she ran over to them.

"I needed to keep him out of trouble," Shiran shrugged. "I was a little too successful, but he'll be fine in the morning. Here, please take him back to the dojo." He handed Tomo to Akane.

"What did you do to him?" Akane demanded.

Shiran looked very directly at her. "I gave him a taste of his own medicine - the hot sauce he fed me. But I also gave him mercy - I only fed him a quarter of what he tricked me into eating. I've also given him the antidote; something Ono had to do for Ranma and me. Tomo won't be so quick to try that again though."

"That was cruel!" she burst out.

Shiran raised an eyebrow at her. "It would be even more cruel to withhold teaching him about consequences," he replied. "Would you let your student get the advantage of you using a cheap trick? Or would you remind them that they still have a ways to go." Akane bit her lip. "Exactly," he added. "You have a tender heart, Miss Tendo. But, while it's true Mercy should always be added to Justice, Justice should also be added to Mercy. Remember that - it may help you do the things you have to do." He placed a hand on Tomo's forehead and a trace of a smile formed on his lips. "He'll be fine though; I promise you. Now, I have to go help clean up. The three of you should go outside. Ranma and the others will be there soon – I promise." With that, he vanished.

"Kitsunes…" Ciren sighed before leading Akane back toward the front of the building to retrieve their coats.

* * *

Daran looked over his equipment. By some miracle, nothing had been damaged. Yul and Lady Hoshi stood nearby. Daran looked over at the Kitsune. "Do I have you to thank for this?" Daran asked.

"Me and my fellows anyway," Yul admitted. "Happiness is always in short supply, and you are never happier than when you're 'spinning disks.' Besides, how else are you going to play for us at our next Rave?"

Daran chuckled and said: "Deal."

"Fine," Yul said. "But you don't have time to pack it up - let us take care of it. We can put it 'as is' in your apartment. Then you can deal with it at your leisure. Consider it part of the 'protection' in exchange for the Rave."

"He'll take it," Lady Hoshi chimed in.

"Huh?" Daran replied.

"You've already agreed to the Rave," she said. "And you don't have time for anything else tonight." Daran turned to look at her sharply, but she was already moving. The Kunoichi Mistress snapped a handcuff on his right hand. He tried to spin away, but the other handcuff was on her left wrist. As a matter of course, he pulled her to him and was forced to catch her. "Why Mr. Hawke!" she exclaimed. "It's proper to ask a girl to dance first; not just yank her on to the dance floor!"

"Hoshi, what are you up to?" Daran demanded.

"Why, I've just been taken hostage," she explained. "You're a fugitive from the law, you see. It's all very exciting for a young woman like me." Yul was smirking.

"What are you talking about and where are the keys?" Daran demanded again.

"Well, Inspector Ojima has decided to arrest the wedding party - minus the Bride and Groom, of course. I understand it's for protective custody," she answered.

"Oh crap," Daran moaned. "That's not happening."

"Well, then, you better flee. Looks like you'll have to take me with you," she said smugly.

"Yul, get these off of me," Daran insisted.

"Love to," the Kitsune replied. "But I don't have the key, and they're enchanted. It's a good piece of work. We need the key."

Daran covered his eyes with his free hand. "Hoshi…" he said in warning tones.

"The key is at my place," she told him with an unruffled calm. "We will have to go there before sunrise."

"Why before sunrise?" Daran pushed.

"Because Inspector Ojima will lift the protective order at sunrise. You'll want to go back to your life then. Until then, you're a fugitive. You might as well take refuge with others who hide from the Law."

"This is revenge for the Bachelor Party, isn't it," he pressed.

Hoshi practically purred as she replied: "Oh no, this is the price for borrowing my shape to teach Hina a lesson. I am the Mistress of one of the largest Kunoichi houses in Japan. My finger is on the pulse of the underworld - I have quite the empire. I have everything I want… and I'm bored out of my wits. You and your friends are the most interesting thing to happen to me in a long time - you in particular. So, I'm going on an adventure: I'm going 'on the lam' with you."

Daran and Hoshi locked gazes for a moment, neither blinking. Daran stared hard into her eyes and thought he recognized something hidden there - something that he didn't have to hide, but she did. He made a gesture with his free hand and his fedora appeared. "Fine. You want an adventure? You got it!" he said. With that, he placed his hat on his head and the handcuffed couple vanished…

* * *

As Akane carried Tomo toward the door, a mist began to rise soundlessly from the floor. "What's happening?" Akane demanded.

"I think the House is getting ready to leave us," Ciren said. "I've seen this before. Looks like Jakaro used a Spirit House as the Wedding Hall. The spell he used is ending. In fact…" Before she could say more, the walls around them thinned and the mist became very thick. Then a wind arose from the west and blew some of the mist away. When they could see again, the two women and their charge were in the middle of a construction yard full of piles of lumber and stone. "In fact, if we just stand still, we'll find our way out quickly," Ciren finished.

Enough mist still hung over the lot that it lowered visibility. Beyond the fence, the flashing lights of the police cars could be seen. "Do we go outside or do we try and find the others first?" Akane asked.

"You hang tight," a voice said off to their right. Yul materialized out of the fog.

"Where's Shiran and Lord Jakaro?" Ciren asked.

"Busy," he answered. "Jakaro's putting the House back. Shiran is making sure no one gets caught in translation. They will be a while. I'm in charge of tidying up on this World. Wait here for a few moments; I'll be back."

He was gone about three minutes when he led Olaf, Nabiki, Mausu, and Hinako to Ciren and Akane. Hinako still had Soun thrown over her shoulder. "I'm fond of him," Hinako said still in her adult form. "But he's getting heavy."

Mousse appeared in front of everyone. "You can give him to me," the young Chinese man said. He took Soun from Hinako easily.

Ranma also appeared. "Well that was interesting," he stated.

"What was?" Akane asked.

"Being arrested," he replied. Akane's eyes widened and she almost dropped Tomo. Ranma rushed forward and took the Kitsune from her.

"I'm fine," he said hurriedly. "Everything's O.K.; I'm not in trouble." Akane punched him in the shoulder and then rested her head on said shoulder in relief.

"Imia was serious?" Nabiki questioned in disbelief.

"Sort of. I'll explain on the way home," Ranma replied as he placed his free arm around Akane. "We need to sneak out of here though. Ojima doesn't want us anyone to see us until sunrise, and I'm not interested in actually ticking him off."

"Who's in this prohibition?" Olaf asked.

Ranma made an inclusive gesture. "Team Ono," he responded. "That's everyone here. Where's Daran? He's included."

"Busy," Yul answered. "Lady Hoshi sort of forced him to kidnap her."

"How the hell did that work?" Ranma asked shocked.

"You had to be there. Let's just say he has his hands full and he knows he has to stay out of sight until sunrise."

Ranma sighed. "All right." He looked at Olaf who was still in his tux. "So what do we do now?"

Olaf shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. You tell me, Boss," the giant replied.

"What?" The pigtailed young man was obviously confused.

"Tofu is on holiday," Ciren said. "We're not. The wedding is over, so is our break. We're on the clock again. Tofu said you're in charge while he and Kasumi are gone."

Ranma's mouth dropped open. Akane and Nabiki had identical smirks on their faces (occasionally, it was obvious they were sisters). Mousse looked amused. The mercenaries were careful to keep their faces impassive. After a minute or so, Nabiki said: "Well, oh mighty tactician? You're the Martial Arts Master. You've executed strategy before and been in a ton of fights. Your squad awaits. What are they - and the rest of us - to do?"

Ranma seemed to shake himself and threw Nabiki a sour look. He was very aware of how well she (and the rest of them) would obey him. Still, it seemed they were looking to him for leadership. He swept a hand over his head, dropped his hands to his side, and blew out a breath. "Fine. We go home and leave the night to Ojima," he said. "Tomorrow is a recovery day. We meet at the dojo tomorrow for dinner. Hinako and Yul? You're welcome to come - for the meal if nothing else." The two nodded. Ranma looked at the mercenaries and added: "If Tofu left you tasks, attend to those. If you can't make tomorrow night, call in. If you find yourselves with idle time and there's nothing better, do a little information gathering. I want to make sure we really have run out of assassins."

"You have," Yul cut in. "Othan and Jakaro finally got to the truth. There may be more next week, but we're done for now."

"I'll take it," Ranma replied. "Ciren? Could you please distract Ojima so Olaf and Hinako can get past the past the police? I'm asking, not ordering. If you're not comfortable, I understand. But, somehow, I don't think Ojima will arrest you."

Ciren laughed. "Don't sweat it, Boss. It's not a conflict of interest." She winked at him. "We'll school you on proper mercenary etiquette tomorrow."

"What about me?" Mausu asked.

"Help Olaf escort Hinako home, then get some rest. Are you on good terms with Othan and his squad assignment-wise?" At Mausu's nod, Ranma continued. "Tomorrow, touch base with them and share intel - I don't want the two teams tripping each other up accidently."

"Not bad," Olaf rumbled. "You've already figured out the first rule of leadership - if you're unsure, fake it." Ranma's face grew red as the team silently clapped. So did the dojo household.

"You'll do just fine," Ciren stated. "See you tomorrow, Boss." With that, she turned and strode off into the mist.

Hinako's eyes burned proudly as she looked at her student. "You're growing up fast," she noted as she motioned to Olaf and Mausu. They walked away in the opposite direction from Ciren.

"You need to pick up the wedding dress and the tux," Yul said quietly. "They're over this way." Nabiki and the three teenagers nodded and followed him deeper into the yard. Yul pointed to clothing laying neatly on some lumber. "They're O.K.," he said. "Just need a cleaning. I'll see you tomorrow evening." With that, he vanished.

Nabiki stepped forward to pick up the wedding dress and stopped. She just stared at the dress. After a full minute, she said in a flat tone: "Akane? I did really well the entire time. I held everything together and helped made sure the wedding happened."

"Yes…yes you did," Akane agreed.

"Can you please do this last task? I'll get Tofu's tuxedo, but I can't pick up the dress. I can't be the one who finally closes the door. Please?" she said in the same tone.

"I got it, Nabiki." With that, Akane carefully picked up the wedding dress and folded it against her body tightly.

Ranma cast a confused glance at Mousse, who placed a finger to his lips. Ranma caught the hint and stayed quiet. The four of them stood silently for a bit, until Ranma finally walked forward to Akane. He shifted Tomo's weight (an easy task) and placed a free arm around Akane. She leaned into him and started to sob lightly. Mousse had to deal with Soun's weight on his shoulder, but he managed to place a firm hand on Nabiki shoulder. Nabiki made no sound.

Eventually, Nabiki placed her hand over Mousse's, and squeezed the hand. She then walked forward and picked up Tofu's tux. In the distance, the police cars pulled away, leaving the construction lot deep in shadow. The four stood and looked around the lot. "I know it doesn't help, but it's true none-the-less," Mousse started. "The end of an era is the beginning of the next. She and he will be back. For now, let's just go home." The other three nodded and slowly started their walk back to the dojo.

* * *

A/N: Next week, I'll post an Epilogue, but it will be an epilogue for the whole arc, so there will be some spoilers in it from other stories. Hold off reading it if you're planning to read "Gifts", "Elemental Battle", or "Akari's Baptism" until afterwards.


	14. Epilogue

Epilogue: Aftermath

A reminder: This epilogue is for the whole arc starting at "The Bachelor Party" and running through this story. Spoilers follow for the other stories...

* * *

Daran stood atop the tower watching the sun rise over Nerima. Hoshi stood in front of him and both were wrapped in his coat. She had her eyes closed and was leaning back against him. Neither said a word, nor did they need too.

* * *

Ranma sat in the living room at the house getting drilled on mercenary protocol by Mausu and Ciren. As with any kind of studies, the young man looked like he was suffering badly, probably because he was. His two teachers had promised to reward him with a work out after dinner, provided he finished his work. Olaf was in the kitchen carefully watching Akane cook, which freed Nodoka to attend to her Nuido. It had surprised the dojo residents that the giant was actually an accomplished cook. Despite her work, Akane was wearing her engagement ring…

* * *

Akane followed Apay into her young ward's bedroom. Even here, Akane wore her new ring, something that amused Apay. The Fire Sprite was also amused by how "over-the-moon" her big sister was. Apay immediately led Akane over to the new feature in the room, a fish tank. Inside, five colorful fish swam.

"This is what you did with the Water Elementals?" Akane asked.

"I needed somewhere safe to store them," Apay answered her. "After the Storm, I can dump them into the Sea. It wouldn't be a kindness to do it until then. They can't hurt you no matter what – There's nothing about you that they can feed on. Just like they can't hurt me either. Ranma and Ryoga are safe too – there's just not enough overlap."

Akane nodded her head. "All right then, you can keep them here," she agreed.

The Human Sprite smirked then: "It's a good thing the Cats can't come here though."

"For now," Akane agreed. "If they start causing problems, I may fix that," the young woman said while indicating the fish. The fish all seemed to give a little shudder and moved away from Akane.

"I think they got your message," Apay laughed.

* * *

The Amazon Elder Razor looked in dismay at the springs her village depended on. Now the five smallest springs were dry and so was the largest – the second largest was the only one flowing. "Gods, no!" she moaned. "This can't be happening! Henna, what have you done to us?" Despondently, she turned back to the village while thinking how to start copying the Books of Lore.

* * *

Henna walked along the path to the Village to answer the urgent summons. She was in a furious mood. She knew what had happened and why everyone was in a panic - and there was nothing she could do about it. "I was tricked!" Henna thought. "The Unryu girl was a distraction! So was Shampoo! Someone played the Sprite so I'd concentrate on them first. I missed the true threat completely. Now, it's too late!"

She sat down on a rock for a minute. Unbidden, the face of a young woman filled her thoughts - one with hard brown eyes and blue-black hair. "NO!" Henna shouted. "NO! DAMN YOU, AKANE TENDO!"

* * *

Liang sat in her pool and reflected on her situation. She had returned to Henna with three souls, the most she could carry. When Henna had demanded where Liang's sisters were, Liang could only tell the witch what she had seen before running for her life: the blue-black haired girl had touched the Water Elementals and destroyed them. Liang couldn't sense them any more in any realm. Henna had screamed, shouted, and struck Liang, but the Water Spirit didn't change her story - Henna's Truth spell forbid that. Her six sisters were gone.

Henna raised her hand to punish Liang, but before Henna struck, Liang reminded Henna that Liang was the sole surviving Spring. If Liang became poisoned, the Amazons were finished as a tribe and the Covenant was broken. Henna stood there raging silently for a full five minutes before angrily ordering Liang back to her Spring.

"I'm untouchable now, Henna," Liang thought smugly. "The Covenant is broken if I dry up. Your power ends and so does your life. I no longer have to do your bidding. As it is, you better hope I can provide enough water for the Tribe, even though I'm compelled to…"

* * *

General Xie looked at the latest dispatches from his spies. The news was unanticipated: Beijing mystics had told him that the springs would dry up, but he never counted on Henna being the one to cause it. "She sent them off and they haven't returned. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot…" he mused. He stood up then and walked to the window in his office. "Still, things are going to come to a head soon. She'll get angry and desperate for power…."

* * *

Kevin whistled as he scraped the burned seaweed off the plate into the garbage. Then he turned and began to scrub the dish in the hot water bucket. Carl came in carrying a large tray full of more dishes. He placed the tray on a kitchen counter and glared at Kevin. "How the hell are you so happy?!" Carl demanded.

Kevin gave Carl a small smile and answered: "Because I'm not dead."

"Might as well be," Carl grumbled. "We're stuck in this house for the next hundred years."

"Would you rather be in Hell? Or consumed by Henna, which amounts to the same thing?" Kevin replied. That brought Carl up short, so Kevin continued: "The pain is gone. We have to work twelve-hour shifts, but they feed us. The work is hard, but the sleep is peaceful and restful. We get one day off in seven and the rest of the workers are friendly enough even knowing our history."

"That's because theirs is worse!" Carl snapped back.

"So, they're sinners like us," Kevin shrugged. "Still beats Hell." His eyes narrowed. "What's got you so pissed?"

Carl blew out a breath. "Those damned Katakirauwa keep trying to steal my soul."

"They can't do that," Kevin half-laughed. "The Master has them for safe keeping - for just that reason. Besides, they're easy to take care of…"

"How so?"

Kevin winked. "Just remind the little swine that there's a lot of pig on the menu and you're the one adding up their tab," he said conspiratorially. "If they continue to harass you, you can always add an entertainment fee that the Master will only be too happy to enforce - and He has ways of collecting what's owed to Him."

Carl stood stunned for a moment. Then he slowly smiled. "He would do that, wouldn't He."

"Ogres Magi don't make the best Masters, but they do protect their own…" Kevin winked again. "…and they certainly beat Hell."

* * *

A/N: And done. In a week or two, there will be a new story: In Japan, during one weekend in January, college-bound high school seniors take two days worth of tests to see if they can get into the college of their choice. This is a national event there, enough to warrant news coverage. Now it's Ranma's and Akane's turn (and their friends). Will Nerima help or hurt them? ... Come see in"Examination Hell"!


End file.
